Stewart McKelvey

3 Doing Business in AtlAntic cAnADA Fall 2014 made on January 21, 2014. The Regulations were originally brought forward in 2010 to establish local, renewable energy as a growth industry, particularly through the Community Feed-in-Tariff (COMFIT) program, which adds qualifying renewable energy fa- cilities to the electrical grid. The 2014 revisions to the Regulations were de- signed to encourage the installation of 15 to 20 mega- watts of tidal power capacity, supported by Energy Minister Andrew Younger's $4 million commitment to fund tidal projects. They draw a line between tidal generation facilities that have one or more devices with capacity greater than 500 kW ("developmental tidal array") and those that do not ("small-scale in-stream tidal"). The revisions create parallel rules for develop- mental tidal arrays, creating a new class of feed-in-tar- iff called a Developmental Tidal Array Feed-in-Tariff (Developmental FIT). Following the revisions, small-scale in-stream tidal developments will continue to apply for COMFITs. This is the same program through which generators of other types of renewable energy, such as wind power, biomass, and run-of-the- river hydroelectricity, are connected to the power grid. COMFITs are available to a variety of community-based entities, such as municipalities, universities, Mi'kmaw band councils, not-for-profits, commun- ity economic development corporations (CEDCs), and co-operatives. The new Regulations give the Board the latitude to set multiple tariffs for De- velopmental FITs. Under the current tariff structure, a developer may choose to enter a "test path", where it obtains an initial 3-year Phase I tariff for a single device, fol- lowed by a Phase II tariff for an array at the same site for 15 years. Alternatively, a developer could gain immediate access to a 15-year tariff via the "developmental path." Unlike COMFITs, applications for Developmental FITs do not have a community requirement. For ex- ample in order to qualify for a COMFIT, a CEDC, must have 25 shareholders located in the same muni- cipality as the facility. To qualify for a Developmental FIT, on the other hand, the only requirement independ- ent of FIT approval is to be a developmental tidal array located in Nova Scotia. Applicants for Developmental FITs must present the following information and documentation: • A project plan. • A stakeholder and public engagement plan. • A full description of the proposed technology. • A business plan demonstrating financial viability. • A risk management plan, with detailed plans to manage any risks identified. • Evidence of contribution to building public trust, and developing tidal energy technologies and approaches. By contrast, COMFIT applications require addi- tional evidence of community engagement. Like COMFITs, Developmental FITs feature a "one-window" committee, through which an applicant benefits from a single government contact (as opposed to contacts from multiple departments). Looking AheAd The tidal power industry is still in its infancy. There is much to be discovered about the vi- ability of large-scale tidal technology. However, pre- liminary research estimates are positive. Development of TISEC devices in the Minas Passage is predicted to produce up to 300 MW of renewable energy, dis- place one million tons of greenhouse gas per year, and draw hundreds of millions in developer investments. The Nova Scotian regulatory regime for tidal power, among the first of its kind worldwide, should help keep Atlantic Canada at the global forefront of the marine renewable energy sector. Sadira Jan, partner Halifax, n.s. 902.444.1701 sjan@stewartmckelvey.com Dante Manna, articled clerk Halifax, n.s. Project tyPe tAriff ($ Per MWh) Wind PoWer Projects, > 50 kW $139 Wind PoWer Projects, ≤ 50 kW $452 BioMAss APProx. $180 sMALL-scALe in-streAM tidAL $653 run-of-the-river hydroeLectricity $140 deveLoPMentAL tidAL ArrAy, deveLoPMentAL PAth $530 if ≤ 16,560 MWh, $420 if > 16,560 MWh deveLoPMentAL tidAL ArrAy, test PAth (PhAse i) $575 if ≤ 3,330 MWh, $420 if > 3,330 MWh deveLoPMentAL tidAL ArrAy, test PAth (PhAse ii) $495 if ≤ 16,560 MWh, $375 if > 16,560 MWh

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