Snipped this map from the Ontario Power Authority’s two-year FIT program review. Here are some key takeaways from the review:

• Solar prices are coming down, and in some cases way down. Small rooftop and ground-mount installs (under 10 kw) will see the FIT rates fall roughly 31 per cent . Large ground-mount systems of 500 kilowatts or higher will see rates fall by 21 per cent.
• Wind of all sizes will see rates drop by about 15 per cent.
• Other renewables, such as hydro, biomass and biogas, will remain the same.
• Going forward, FIT prices will be set when contract is offered, not at time of application.
• It’s being recommended that the government review supply and demand at end of 2013 and consider rising its green energy targets.
• Up to 50 megawatts of contract capacity is being reserved for hydroelectric.
• FIT rate reviews and adjustments will now take place annually.
• Regulatory approvals are being streamlined in some areas.
• Projects with a minimum of 15 per cent equity participation from aboriginal groups or communities will get extra points that give them priority in the queue. More points go to projects that have municipal or aboriginal council support.
• 10 per cent of remaining FIT contract capacity will get set aside for projects that have a minimum of 50 per cent community or aboriginal ownership.
• It looks like programs that offer supportive funding for community and aboriginal projects, such as the Community Power Fund, will get a boost based on recommendations from fund manager and program administrator.

A lot of coverage of this is making it seem like the government is reacting to rural protest against wind and solar farms, and unfounded public concerns about higher energy costs due to green energy. This is partly true, such as with the move to give communities more say, to encourage greater community participation, and to set aside capacity for projects with community ownership. These are all good moves. But the reduction in solar and wind prices, that was all to be expected. This is how FIT programs work — prices are supposed to come down over time. Even for solar, many in the industry seemed prepared to accept a reduction of around 25 per cent to reflect lower technology costs. The 15 per cent reduction for wind is also fair, in my view. My own opinion, however, is that large-scale solar should have seen greater reductions, and small rooftop rates should have seen lower reductions. MicroFIT solar installations, taken together, are still so small that they barely register in the overall price mix. Large solar projects benefit from economies of scale, do have a much greater impact on electricity prices, and should have taken a slightly larger rate haircut.  There’s also the fact that small rooftop projects aren’t controversial and make it possible for more citizens to participate in Ontario’s energy future.

What I didn’t see in this review was a much-needed call to accelerate transmission build-out and upgrade distribution systems with an eye to modernizing our electricity system — i.e. building a smart grid that makes the system more efficient and can accommodate more renewables. This entire area, in my view, has been neglected. There was also no talk of creating FITs for geothermal heating/cooling and solar thermal, and no talk of moving larger projects — particularly large wind projects, of say 20 megawatts or more — to the RFP model we used to use. Also, no talk of trying to work energy storage into the mix. At the moment, the FIT program discourages experimentation with solar because wind and solar producers aren’t penalized for producing energy during off-peak times when we don’t need it. The failure to come up with a FIT rate that differentiates between peak and off-peak times won’t lead to the kind of innovation we need.

One small note: It was good to see that domestic content rules are being created for concentrated solar thermal technology. The absence of these rules has made it difficult for Toronto-based Morgan Solar to participate in the FIT program.