This Request for Proposals ("RFP") is an invitation by the Independent Electricity System Operator (the “IESO”) to prospective Proponents to submit proposals for the provision of the Small Business Program (SBP) delivery Services in one or more of five regions across Ontario, as described in Appendix C of this RFP (the "Services"), during the period of time described in Section 1.4 of Appendix C of this RFP.
In September 2020, the IESO received the 2020 Ministerial Directive from the Minister of Energy, Northern Development and Mines to design, coordinate, deliver, and/or fund the delivery of electricity Conservation and Demand Management (“CDM”) programs for electricity customers (“Programs”, each a “Program”) through the 2021-2024 CDM Framework.
The 2020 Ministerial Directive established principles for the IESO’s implementation of the 2021-2024 CDM Framework; which include the prioritization of Programs that yield high reductions in energy usage and peak demand, in a cost effective manner. To this end, the IESO developed a 2021-2024 CDM Framework Program Plan.
One of these Programs, the Small Business Program (SBP), will provide incentives to encourage small business owners to upgrade existing lighting and refrigeration equipment to more efficient technologies, and install commercial smart thermostats to more effectively manage the energy consumption of their business. SBP Participants are owners and tenants of commercial, institutional and agricultural facilities that meet certain Eligibility Criteria.
The IESO has divided the province into five (5) Geographical Regions for SBP delivery. The IESO is seeking one qualified Service Provider, per Geographical Region, to provide a turn-key solution for the delivery of the SBP to eligible Participants and to achieve the Geographical Region Target through the installation of Eligible Measures. To meet the IESO’s objectives, Service Provider(s) must be able to deliver the following Services:
- Launch Work Plan
- Lead Generation and Outreach Plan
- Kick-off Meeting(s) and program set-up activities
- Scheduling Assessments and completing installations
- Following defined processes to receive payments
- General program administration
- Reporting
It is the intent of the IESO to procure more than one Service Provider to provide SBP delivery Services. For clarity, Proponents may bid on one or more of the Geographical Regions as described in Appendix G, however, the IESO does not intend to contract with any one Preferred Proponent for more than three of the five Geographical Regions.
