Many hydro accounts specifically tied to the common areas of multi-residential buildings will no longer qualify for the 31.8 per cent rebate beginning in November 2020.

A temporary adjustment to Ontario’s electricity pricing scheme eliminates cost-saving opportunities that many operators of large commercial buildings were anticipating this summer.

For Class A consumers, cost-saving potential will be diminished even if they successfully curtail demand during the five peak hours since those peaks are expected to be lower than usual.

The CECRA program is voluntary. Not all eligible landlords will necessarily take advantage of this program for various reasons.

Commercial and industrial electricity customers will pay the differential above 11.5 cents per kilowatt-hour in added monthly increments beginning in January 2021.

Despite a steep drop in province-wide energy consumption due to COVID-19 triggered business shutdowns, many building owners/managers expect a more modest flow-through dip in operating costs.

The move was announced in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, but additionally opens a window to adjust the mechanics of the assessment process itself.

Along with measures to discourage spurious lawsuits, the legislation has implications for commercial real estate operators and any organization with potential scofflaws among its employees or membership.

Owners of smaller commercial and multi-residential buildings in Ontario will still be welcome to voluntarily share energy and water consumption data, but a looming deadline for mandatory disclosure has been withdrawn.

It's still unclear how the process of securing environmental approvals for combined heat and power systems will be streamlined, but the Ontario government's recent pledge has been greeted enthusiastically in the buildings sector.

The move concludes the process begun five months ago when the newly elected United Conservative Party government repealed the carbon tax and eliminated the funding source for the incentives.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing says the underlying principle of improving accessibility will be maintained, and connects the revisions to the government's commitment to cut red tape that is slowing down the production of new housing.

Newly adopted amendments to Alberta's Municipal Government Act extend provisions that were initially devised to support the rejuvenation of derelict brownfields to all non-residential properties.

Ontario draws on the legacy of more than a dozen years of programming, while Energy Efficiency Alberta has had little time to capture public or capital planners' attention.

With the largest share of relatively inexpensive lighting upgrades completed, finding additional energy savings gets more complicated and costly. However, significant paybacks are projected from the increase in upfront program costs.

The current formula for allocating global adjustment costs is generally thought to be locked in for at least another year. Changes in the conservation and demand management regime are unfolding more rapidly.

More stringent fines and an extended period for prosecutions are slated to come into force 30 days after the Ontario legislature adopts the Budget Measures Act.