BILL 42

An Act to Amend the Electricity Act

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, enacts as follows:

1 Subsection 142(1) of the Electricity Act, chapter 7 of the Acts of New Brunswick, 2013, is amended by adding after paragraph (l) the following:

(l.1)  respecting a program requiring the Corporation to ensure that a portion of the electricity it obtains from renewable resources is generated by small-scale generation facilities, including, but without limitation,

( i) respecting a procurement set-aside for Aboriginal businesses, including,

( A) specifying the total amount of new capacity the Corporation shall endeavour to obtain from Aboriginal businesses,

( B) specifying the maximum amount of new capacity the Corporation may obtain from a small-scale generation facility owned by one or more Aboriginal businesses and the maximum amount the Corporation may obtain from two or more small-scale generation facilities owned by two or more Aboriginal businesses and located on the same site,

( C) respecting a notice of a call for expressions of interest,

( D) respecting procurement processes for obtaining electricity from Aboriginal businesses,

( E) authorizing an Aboriginal business to enter into a partnership to develop, operate and maintain a small-scale generation facility with any individual who is not a resident of the Province or with any corporation or organization that is owned by an individual who is not a resident of the Province and respecting the portion that will count towards the total amount of new capacity the Corporation shall endeavour to obtain,

( F) authorizing the Corporation to enter into a partnership with one or more Aboriginal businesses to develop, operate and maintain a small-scale generation facility and respecting the portion that will count towards the total amount of new capacity the Corporation shall endeavour to obtain,

( G) authorizing the Corporation to enter into a partnership with one or more Aboriginal businesses to refurbish, operate and maintain a generation facility owned by the Corporation and respecting the portion that will count towards the total amount of new capacity the Corporation shall endeavour to obtain,

( ii) respecting a procurement set-aside for local entities, including,

( A) specifying the total amount of new capacity the Corporation shall endeavour to obtain from local entities,

( B) specifying the maximum amount of new capacity the Corporation may obtain from a small-scale generation facility owned by one or more local entities and the maximum amount the Corporation may obtain from two or more small-scale generation facilities owned by two or more local entities and located on the same site,

( C) respecting a notice of a call for expressions of interest,

( D) respecting procurement processes for obtaining electricity from local entities,

( E) authorizing a local entity to enter into a partnership to develop, operate and maintain a small-scale generation facility with any individual who is not a resident of the Province or with any corporation or organization that is owned by an individual who is not a resident of the Province and respecting the portion that will count towards the total amount of new capacity the Corporation shall endeavour to obtain,

( F) authorizing the Corporation to enter into a partnership with one or more local entities to develop, operate and maintain a small-scale generation facility and respecting the portion that will count towards the total amount of new capacity the Corporation shall endeavour to obtain,

( G) authorizing the Corporation to enter into a partnership with one or more local entities to refurbish, operate and maintain a generation facility owned by the Corporation and respecting the portion that will count towards the total amount of new capacity the Corporation shall endeavour to obtain, and

( iii) respecting procurement rules in relation to obtaining electricity through distributed generation, including,

( A) deeming any electricity obtained by the Corporation in accordance with an embedded generation agreement or a net metering agreement that is in effect on the date the program begins as electricity obtained under the program,

( B) respecting the criteria an embedded generation facility must meet in order to provide the Corporation with electricity under an embedded generation agreement, and

( C) respecting the criteria for providing the Corporation with electricity under a net metering agreement;

2 This Act comes into force on a day or days to be fixed by proclamation.