Assessing regulatory, policy and market impacts on Canada’s electricity grid modernization

Natural Resource Canada (NRCan) is seeking input regarding the regulatory, policy and market barriers and opportunities for accelerating the pace of electrification and electricity grid modernization. This is part of NRCan’s Innovation and Electricity Regulation Initiative, which aims to enhance Federal Programming to address stakeholder needs in the complex regulatory environment related to grid modernization and electrification.

Information Sought

There currently exists an opportunity for federal programming to better serve economic regulators, innovators, and utilities and their activities related to regulatory innovation, electrification and grid modernization. Federal investments, using tax-based funding, can complement or replace utility-level investments funded through the rate base. The federal government may also play a role in assisting utilities and regulators operating within current regulatory, policy and market frameworks, or may assist sector stakeholders in innovating to change these frameworks to better suit the needs of the electricity system of the future.

This RFI seeks written feedback from electricity stakeholders, particularly economic regulators, utilities, system operators, and energy service companies, to better understand the regulatory, policy, market factors and related tools and resources needed to advance grid modernization technology adoption at the system level. Additionally, this RFI seeks to understand what role the federal government can play to help stakeholders achieve their grid modernization and electrification goals on the path to a net-zero electricity system.

Request for Information (RFI) open until March 23, 2023