Five things to watch for Clean Electricity Regulations

The Canadian Climate Institute outlines five key areas of concern regarding the federal Clean Electricity Regulations (CER), including the treatment of gas-powered facilities built after 2025, the 'prescribed' lifespan of existing gas plants, rules for using gas to balance renewables, the management of post-2035 residual emissions, and the potential shift from output-based to full carbon pricing for the electricity sector.

• The proposed Clean Electricity Regulations (CER) aim to establish a near-zero emissions performance standard by 2035, requiring power plants to either meet this level or make financial payments/purchase offsets for residual emissions.
• There is a risk of increased emissions before 2035 because the federal government has indicated that gas-powered facilities commissioned in 2025 or later will only be subject to CER rules starting in 2035.
• The regulations will allow natural gas facilities built before 2025 to operate for an unspecified 'prescribed' period after 2035, the length of which will determine the volume of residual emissions and the extent of provincial reliance on gas for baseload power.
• While the CER acknowledges that natural gas may be needed for emergencies and to balance variable wind and solar, the specific annual emissions limits and permitted operating hours for these facilities remain unspecified.
• The author suggests that the federal government should replace the current output-based pricing system in the electricity sector with the full carbon price to better complement the CER and drive cost-effective reductions.
• Research indicates that transitioning to clean electricity could result in an average energy cost saving of 12 per cent for households by 2050.

APA

Canadian Climate Institute (2023). Five things to watch for Clean Electricity Regulations. https://climateinstitute.ca/five-things-to-watch-for-clean-electricity-regulations/

Chicago

Canadian Climate Institute. Five things to watch for Clean Electricity Regulations. 2023. https://climateinstitute.ca/five-things-to-watch-for-clean-electricity-regulations/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Canadian Climate Institute |title=Five things to watch for Clean Electricity Regulations |date=3 August 2023 |url=https://climateinstitute.ca/five-things-to-watch-for-clean-electricity-regulations/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{canadianclimateinstitute2023five, author = {{Canadian Climate Institute}}, title = {{Five things to watch for Clean Electricity Regulations}}, institution = {Canadian Climate Institute}, year = {2023}, month = aug, url = {https://climateinstitute.ca/five-things-to-watch-for-clean-electricity-regulations/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }