The EDA is pleased to share with our members the association’s newest paper, Power of Sustainability – How Local Distribution Companies Can Enable a Net-Zero Future.
As members know, governments at all levels are grappling with the need for more immediate actions to address the root cause of climate change – the emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs). Transforming to a net-zero economy requires an evolution of the energy systems that power day-to-day activities from the residential sector through to large industrial processes. Simultaneously, this change requires an increase in zero-emissions electricity supply and an increase in the use of electricity in processes and systems as an alternative to fossil fuels.
Local distribution companies (LDCs) will need to navigate the environmental changes in the electricity industry that will occur and plan the adoption of new policies to support net-zero goals. LDCs must be encouraged to form partnerships within the communities they serve to support the achievement of targets, including the delivery of services to support GHG emissions reductions and broader electrification. As the Ontario and Canadian governments move forward with policies to drive zero-emissions grids to power the economy, Ontario’s LDCs must be part of the planning and decision-making to ensure customers can successfully transition to low-carbon energy options.
This paper, and its recommendations, aim to inform distributors, government, and industry partners of the opportunities for our sector related to net-zero initiatives and to identify regulatory barriers that need to be addressed to enable LDCs to achieve these goals. This will assist distributors in determining which roles their LDCs can undertake to facilitate and support net-zero initiatives.