ORDER NUMBER
G-111-25
IN THE MATTER OF
the Utilities Commission Act, RSBC 1996, Chapter 473
and
FortisBC Alternative Energy Services Inc.
Stream A TES Registration of the W68 Thermal Energy System
BEFORE:
B. A. Magnan, Commissioner
on April 30, 2025
ORDER
WHEREAS:
A. On February 25, 2025, FortisBC Alternative Energy Services Inc. (FAES) filed with the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) an application (Application) to register the W68 Thermal Energy System (TES) as a Stream A TES, in accordance with the BCUC TES Regulatory Framework Guidelines approved by Order
G-27-15;
B. On August 27, 2014, by Order G-121-14, the BCUC granted an exemption to a person, or the person’s lessee, trustee, receiver or liquidator, who owns or operates in British Columbia a Stream A TES for the production, generation, storage, transmission, sale, delivery or provision of any agent for the production of heat or cold for compensation, with a capital cost less than a maximum threshold and greater than a minimum threshold, from sections 44.1, 45 and 59-61 of the Utilities Commission Act (UCA) for that specific TES. The exemption only applied if the person filed information that allowed the BCUC to determine that Order
G-121-14 applied to the person’s specific TES and the BCUC determined that Order G-121-14 applied to the person’s specific TES;
C. On February 26, 2025, by Order G-47-25, the BCUC rescinded Order G-121-14 and granted an exemption to a person, or the person's lessee, trustee, receiver or liquidator, who owns or operates in British Columbia a Fixed-Scale TES for the production, generation, storage, transmission, sale, delivery or provision of heat and/or cold for compensation, with a capital cost greater than a minimum threshold, from sections 28 to 30, 34 to 35, 39, 44.1, 45 and 59 to 61 of the UCA for that specific TES. The exemption only applies if:
1. The person files information that allows the BCUC to determine that Order G-47-25 applies to the person’s specific TES; and
2. The BCUC determines that Order G-47-25 applies to the person’s specific TES;
D. On February 26, 2025, by Order G-48-25, the BCUC rescinded Order G-27-15 and issued revised TES Guidelines (Revised TES Guidelines);
E. On March 14, 2025, the BCUC issued BCUC Staff Questions No. 1 regarding the W68 TES, and on March 26, 2025 FAES filed its responses;
F. FAES requests that certain information contained in the Application and responses to BCUC Staff Questions No. 1 be held confidential by the BCUC in perpetuity, pursuant to Section 18 of the BCUC’s Rules of Practice and Procedure. FAES has provided a version of the Application with the proposed confidential information redacted and public and confidential responses to BCUC Staff Questions No. 1. FAES states that the information is commercially sensitive and if publicly disclosed, could reasonably be expected to result in harm or prejudice to FAES’s competitive or negotiating position with other parties or future projects; and
G. The BCUC has reviewed the Application and responses to BCUC Staff Questions No. 1 and is satisfied that the W68 TES meets the eligibility criteria of a Fixed-Scale TES and is suitable for exemption.
NOW THEREFORE pursuant to section 88(3) of the UCA and with the advance approval of the minister responsible for the administration of the Hydro and Power Authority Act, the BCUC orders as follows:
1. FAES is exempt from sections 28 to 30, 34 to 35, 39, 44.1, 45 and 59 to 61 of the UCA for the W68 TES.
2. FAES must file with the BCUC, an annual report for the W68 TES in accordance with the Fixed-Scale TES annual report form, as outlined in Section C.7 of Appendix C to the Revised TES Guidelines, as may be amended from time to time.
3. The W68 TES may not be extended without applying to the BCUC to determine whether the extension of the W68 TES qualifies for exemption.
4. The unredacted version of the Application and the confidential responses to BCUC Staff Questions No. 1 shall be treated as confidential unless otherwise determined by the BCUC.
DATED at the City of Vancouver, in the Province of British Columbia, this 30th day of April 2025.
BY ORDER
Electronically signed by Bernard Magnan
B. A. Magnan
Commissioner