Resilient LLP (formerly DeMarco Allan LLP)
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DT Vollmer

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IESO Releases 2021 Annual Acquisition Report

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Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) earlier this week released its 2021 Annual Acquisition Report (the Report) providing details on  the province’s future reliability needs and how to address them. The Report sets out an approach to address these needs over three planning horizons: operations planning, near-term planning, and long-term planning. The Report is anticipated to lead to demand reductions and increased procurement of lower-carbon power. This bulletin outlines key highlights of the Report:   Understanding Ontario’s Reliability Needs Demand side uncertainties. Energy consumption is predicted to increase 1 percent each year until 2040. This prediction may be affected by the pace of economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, demographic changes, changes in government policy, future energy management initiatives, and increasing electrification. Energy management. The Report indicates that the Industrial Conservation Initiative program is forecasted to reduce demand by 1300 MW with an additional 2.8 TWh and 450 MW of energy and demand savings from the 2021-2024 Conservation and Demand Management (CDM) Framework. Planned Actions to Ensure Resource Adequacy Flow East Towards Toronto (FETT). With the upcoming planned nuclear retirements and recommissioning, the supply capacity east of the FETT is expected to decline considerably and additional supply will be required as early as 2023. As a result, IESO is recommending upgrading the transmission line between North Oakville and Pearson Airport by 2026, reducing capacity needs by 2000 MW. To meet the increased demand, IESO is negotiating a transitional contract for the Lennox Generating Station which ends in April 2029. The Lennox Generating Station provides large-scale and flexible supply from a dual gas and oil generation facility. West of London. Electricity demand in Windsor-Essex and Chatham-Kent is expected to grow from 500 to 2300 MW by 2035. As a result, IESO is recommending development of new transmission infrastructure from Lambton to Chatham and Chatham to Lakeshore, which will require addressing…

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Canada’s UNDRIP Law Receives Royal Assent

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Bill C-15, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (the Act), received Royal Assent on June 21, 2021. The Act affirms the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) as a universal international human rights instrument applicable in Canadian law and seeks to provide a framework for its implementation in Canada. This bulletin provides an overview of the implications and key aspects of the Act. Implications of the Act. The Act is widely seen as the first step in the domestic implementation of UNDRIP in Canada and follows similar legislation adopted by British Columbia in 2019. The Act does not itself implement UNDRIP into Canadian law but provides a pathway for its adoption and application, commensurate with Canadian law and the framework for recognizing the rights of Indigenous peoples provided under Canada’s Constitution. It is not yet clear to what extent Canadian law will be made consistent with certain provisions of UNDRIP, specifically the right of Indigenous peoples to free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) for actions that may affect their rights, resources, and traditional territories. It is, however, probable that the use of UNDRIP as a tool for the interpretation of rights and statutes is likely to increase, in light of the Act, as laws are amended and adopted, in order to ensure or improve consistency with UNDRIP. Rights of Indigenous peoples. Section 2(2) provides that the Act upholds, and does not abrogate or derogate from, the rights of Indigenous peoples recognized and affirmed by section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982.   Consistency with UNDRIP. Section 5 provides that the Government of Canada must take all measures to ensure that the laws of Canada are consistent with UNDRIP. Action Plan. Section 6 provides that the Minister designated by the Governor in Council pursuant to section 3 (the Minister), must prepare…

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Canada Submits NDC to UNFCCC, Formally Commits to Reduce Emissions by 40-45% by 2030

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Canada yesterday filed its update to its nationally determined contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) secretariat. The updated NDC commits Canada to reduce GHG emissions by its previously announced target of 40-45% below 2005 levels by 2030, reaching net-zero emissions by 2050. Canada’s emissions reduction ambitions under the NDC are supported by the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change and Canada’s strengthened climate plan: A Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy (read our earlier bulletin on the plan here) as well as the various climate plans of provincial and territorial governments and the climate leadership, priorities, and goals of the Indigenous peoples of Canada.   Modelling for the NDC indicates that GHG emissions are anticipated to decline to 401 to 438 Mt CO2e by 2030. Further reductions are to be achieved with the adoption of innovative technologies such as zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs), industrial electrification, carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), and hydrogen. The NDC makes clear that Canada is committed to a just transition to a net-zero economy (read our earlier bulletin on the Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act here) through economic diversification and support for workers with skills training, education, accreditation, and ensuring equitable access to opportunities for underrepresented individuals and groups. For further information or to discuss the contents of this bulletin, please contact Lisa DeMarco at lisa@resilientllp.com.

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TSVCM Launches New Phase II Report

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The Taskforce on Scaling Voluntary Carbon Markets (TSVCM) today launched its Phase II Report (the Report), setting out an accelerated roadmap to a scaled, high-integrity voluntary market for the trading of carbon credits. The TSVCM is a private sector-led initiative working to scale an effective and efficient voluntary carbon market (VCM) to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. The TSVCM was launched by Mark Carney, UN Special Envoy for Climate and Finance and former governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank England and is chaired by Bill Winter, Group Chief Executive, Standard Chartered (read our earlier bulletins on the TSVCM here and here). Resilient LLP’s Lisa DeMarco is a member of the Legal principles and contracts Working Group of the TSVCM and Resilient LLP is a proud signatory of the TSVCM endorsement letter. This bulletin briefly summarizes the Report’s key points:   Objectives and focus of the TSVCM. The Report indicates that the TSVCM’s primary focus is to raise public awareness of the climate and co-benefits of VCMs and engage with stakeholders to drive both demand and supply in these markets.   Governance. The Report summarizes the Terms of Reference of the new umbrella governance body, which will have a mandate to (i) mitigate climate change and accelerate the transition to net zero; (ii) establish Core Carbon Principles (CCP) eligibility guidelines and additional attributes, an assessment framework for standard setters, and eligibility principles for suppliers and validation and verification bodies (VVBs); (iii) oversee standard setting organizations adherence to the CCPs; (iv) coordinate the work of, and manage interlinkages between, governance bodies; and (v) serve as a steward for the VCM. In addition, the TSVCM is seeking recommendations on the following five topics ahead of establishing the new umbrella body: • Modalities and procedures for the Board of Directors; • Transparency mechanism; • Grievance mechanism; • Transversal…

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CIBC Announces Voluntary Carbon Market Pilot

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CIBC, IItaú Unibanco (the largest bank in Latin America), National Australia Bank (Australia’s largest business bank), and NatWest Group (a leading banking and financial services group in the UK and Ireland) today announced the launching of Project Carbon (the Project), a carbon offset platform which will seek to increase transparency in the voluntary carbon markets. The Project aims to provide carbon offsets to clients of the four banks with clear and consistent pricing and standards and aligns with the Mark Carney led Taskforce on Scaling Voluntary Carbon Markets (TSVCM) (read our earlier bulletins on the TSVCM here and here). Key features of the Project: Represents the book of record for ownership of carbon credits; Allows owners of credits to clearly demonstrate possession, reducing risks of double counting and simplifying reporting; Supports price discovery through the posting of executed trade sizes and prices to the market; Promotes project investment through the transparent demonstration of market demand; Provides full traceability and linkage back to source of the credit; Assists Registries by facilitating the rapid scaling of client base; Takes care of post trade settlement, allowing all market participants including exchanges and marketplaces to offer additional value added services;  Aligned with the objectives of the TSVCM;  Pilot built on a private Ethereum platform developed with ConsenSys.  The Project seeks to increase the delivery of high-quality carbon offset projects, facilitate a liquid carbon credit marketplace, create a strong ecosystem to support offset markets, and develop tools to help manage climate-related risks. The Project is launching as a pilot in August. Institutions interested in advancing the objectives of the of TSVCM are invited to join the Project. For further information or to discuss the contents of this bulletin, please contact Lisa DeMarco at lisa@resilientllp.com.

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