Regulations Limiting Carbon Dioxide Emissions from Natural Gas-fired Generation of Electricity (SOR/2018-261)

Overview

Marginal note:Purpose

1 These Regulations establish a regime for limiting carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions that result from the generation of electricity by means of thermal energy from the combustion of natural gas, whether in conjunction with other fuels, except coal, or not.

Interpretation

Marginal note:Definitions

• 2 (1) The following definitions apply in these Regulations.

  Act

  Act means the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999. (Loi)

  API

  API means the American Petroleum Institute. (API)

  ASTM

  ASTM means ASTM International, formerly known as the American Society for Testing and Materials. (ASTM)

  auditor

  auditor means a person who

  • (a) is independent of the responsible person that is to be audited; and

  • (b) has knowledge of and has experience with respect to

    • (i) the certification, operation and relative accuracy test audit of continuous emission monitoring systems, and

    • (ii) quality assurance and quality control procedures in relation to those systems. (vérificateur)

  authorized official

  authorized official means

  • (a) in respect of a responsible person that is a corporation, an officer of the corporation who is authorized to act on its behalf;

  • (b) in respect of a responsible person that is an individual, that individual or an individual who is authorized to act on that individual’s behalf; and

  • (c) in respect of a responsible person that is another entity, a person authorized to act on that other entity’s behalf. (agent autorisé)

  biomass

  biomass means a fuel that consists only of non-fossilized, biodegradable organic material that originates from plants or animals but does not originate from a geological formation, and includes gases and liquids that are recovered from the decomposition of organic waste. (biomasse)

  boiler unit

  boiler unit means a unit that consists of at least one boiler but does not have a combustion engine. (groupe chaudière)

  capacity

  capacity means

  • (a) in the case of a unit, the maximum continuous rating (the maximum net power that can be continuously sustained by the unit without the use of duct burners, at standard conditions), expressed in MW, as most recently reported to a provincial authority of competent jurisdiction or to the electric system operator in the province where the unit is located; and

  • (b) in the case of a combustion engine, the manufacturer provided capacity, expressed in MW. (capacité)

  combustion engine

  combustion engine means an engine, other than an engine that is self-propelled or designed to be propelled while performing its function, that

  • (a) operates according to the Brayton thermodynamic cycle and combusts natural gas to produce a net amount of motive power; or

  • (b) combusts natural gas and uses reciprocating motion to convert thermal energy into mechanical work. (moteur à combustion)

  combustion engine unit

  combustion engine unit means a unit that consists of at least one combustion engine and, if applicable, a heat recovery system, but does not have a boiler. (groupe moteur à combustion)

  continuous emission monitoring system

  continuous emission monitoring system or CEMS means equipment for the sampling, conditioning and analyzing of emissions from a given source and the recording of data related to those emissions. (système de mesure et d’enregistrement en continu des émissions ou SMECE)

  facility

  facility means all buildings, other structures and equipment, whether the equipment is stationary or not, that are located on a single site or adjacent sites and that are operated as a single integrated site. (installation)

  fossil fuel

  fossil fuel means a fuel other than biomass. (combustible fossile)

  heat recovery system

  heat recovery system means equipment, other than a boiler, that extracts heat from a combustion engine’s exhaust gases in order to generate steam or hot water. (système de récupération de la chaleur)

  heat to electricity ratio

  heat to electricity ratio means, in respect of a unit, the total useful thermal energy production in a calendar year, expressed in GWh, divided by the total gross electricity generation in that calendar year, expressed in GWh. (rapport chaleur-électricité)

  natural gas

  natural gas means a mixture of hydrocarbons — such as methane, ethane or propane — that is in a gaseous state at standard conditions and that is composed of at least 70% methane by volume or that has a higher heating value that is not less than 35 MJ/standard m³ and not more than 41 MJ/standard m³. It excludes landfill gas, digester gas, gas from wastewater treatment systems, refinery gas, sour gas, blast furnace gas, producer gas, coke oven gas, gas derived from petroleum coke or coal — including synthetic gas — or any gaseous fuel produced in a process that might result in highly variable sulphur content or heating value. (gaz naturel)

  operator

  operator means a person who has the charge, management or control of a unit. (exploitant)

  performance test verifier

  performance test verifier means a person who

  • (a) is independent of the responsible person for which the performance test is being conducted; and

  • (b) has knowledge of and has experience with respect to performance testing of boiler units. (vérificateur de l’essai de rendement)

  potential electrical output

  potential electrical output means the quantity of electricity that would be generated by a unit in a calendar year if the unit were to operate at capacity at all times during that calendar year. (production potentielle d’électricité)

  Reference Method

  Reference Method means the document entitled Reference Method for Source Testing: Quantification of Carbon Dioxide Releases by Continuous Emission Monitoring Systems from Thermal Power Generation, June 2012, published by the Department of the Environment. (Méthode de référence)

  responsible person

  responsible person means an owner or operator of a unit. (personne responsable)

  standard conditions

  standard conditions means a temperature of 15˚C and a pressure of 101.325 kPa. (conditions normales)

  standard m³

  standard m³ means a volume expressed in cubic metres — at standard conditions. (m³ normalisé)

  unit

  unit means an assembly comprised of a boiler or combustion engine and any other equipment that is physically connected to either, including duct burners and other combustion devices, heat recovery systems, steam turbines, generators and emission control devices and that operate together to generate electricity and, if applicable, produce useful thermal energy, from the combustion of natural gas. (groupe)

  useful life

  useful life, in respect of a boiler unit referred to in subsection 3(4), has the same meaning as in subsection 2(1) of the Reduction of Carbon Dioxide Emissions from Coal-fired Generation of Electricity Regulations. (vie utile)

  useful thermal energy

  useful thermal energy means energy in the form of steam or hot water that is destined for a use — other than the generation of electricity — that would have required the consumption of energy in the form of fuel or electricity had that steam or hot water not been used. (énergie thermique utile)

• Marginal note:Interpretation of documents incorporated by reference

  (2) For the purposes of interpreting documents that are incorporated by reference into these Regulations, “should” must be read to mean “must” and any recommendation or suggestion must be read as an obligation.

• Marginal note:Standards incorporated by reference

  (3) Any standard of the ASTM, Gas Processors Association or the API that is incorporated by reference into these Regulations is incorporated as amended from time to time.

Application

Marginal note:New generation of electricity — boiler units

• 3 (1) These Regulations apply to any boiler unit that has a capacity of 25 MW or more, that begins generating electricity on or after January 1, 2019, beginning on January 1 of the calendar year during which it meets the following conditions:

  • (a) more than 30% of its heat input, on average, during the calendar year, comes from the combustion of natural gas;

  • (b) its heat to electricity ratio is not more than 0.9; and

  • (c) a quantity of the electricity that it generates is sold or distributed to the electric grid.

• Marginal note:New generation of electricity — combustion engine units

  (2) These Regulations apply to any combustion engine unit that has a capacity of 25 MW or more, that begins generating electricity on or after January 1, 2021, beginning on January 1 of the calendar year during which it meets the following conditions:

  • (a) more than 30% of its heat input, on average, during the calendar year, comes from the combustion of natural gas; and

  • (b) 33% or more of its potential electrical output is sold or distributed to the electric grid, without regard to the quantity of electricity sold or distributed to the electric grid coming from the unit if the unit is equipped with replacement combustion engines that are temporarily installed, for a period of not more than 90 days, as part of repairs or maintenance, during the replacement period.

• Marginal note:Existing generation of electricity

  (3) These Regulations also apply to any unit referred to in subsection (1) or (2) that generated electricity at a facility before January 1, 2019 in the case of a boiler unit and before January 1, 2021 in the case of a combustion engine unit and

  • (a) was moved to another facility on or after whichever of those dates is applicable; or

  • (b) is a combustion engine unit for which more than 50% of the total capacity of the combustion engines comes from combustion engines installed on or after January 1, 2021, unless they are engines that have a capacity of 150 MW or less and are installed to replace engines that have a capacity of 150 MW or less and that are installed before January 1, 2021.

• Marginal note:Significantly modified — conversion to natural gas

  (4) These Regulations also apply to any boiler unit referred to in subsection (1) that was registered under subsection 4(1) of the Reduction of Carbon Dioxide Emissions from Coal-fired Generation of Electricity Regulations, and that generated electricity before January 1, 2019, beginning on January 1 of the calendar year following that in which the unit ceases to combust coal.

• Marginal note:Hybrid configuration

  (5) If a combustion engine unit and a boiler unit share the same steam turbine, the provisions of these Regulations apply as follows:

  • (a) with respect to a combustion engine unit, they apply to the assembly comprised of combustion engines and any other equipment connected to them including the steam turbine that it shares with the boiler unit; and

  • (b) with respect to a boiler unit, they apply to the assembly comprised of boilers and any other equipment connected to them including the steam turbine that it shares with the combustion engine unit.

• Marginal note:Non-application

  (6) These Regulations do not apply to units with respect to a calendar year in which they generate electricity and, if applicable, produce useful thermal energy from the combustion of coal as defined in subsection 2(1) of the Reduction of Carbon Dioxide Emissions from Coal-fired Generation of Electricity Regulations.

Requirements

Emission Intensity Limits

Marginal note:General

• 4 (1) A responsible person for a unit must not emit from the unit an amount of CO₂ from the combustion of fossil fuels in the unit, that is, during a calendar year, on average, greater than any of the following intensity limits, as applicable:

  • (a) 420 tonnes of CO₂ emissions/GWh of energy produced

    • (i) in the case of boiler units, other than those referred to in subsection 3(4), and

    • (ii) in the case of combustion engine units that are equipped with at least one combustion engine that has a capacity of more than 150 MW; and

  • (b) 550 tonnes of CO₂ emissions/GWh of energy produced in the case of combustion engine units that are equipped with combustion engines that have a capacity of 150 MW or less.

• Marginal note:Significantly modified boiler units

  (2) It is prohibited for a responsible person for a boiler unit referred to in subsection 3(4) to emit from the boiler unit an amount of CO₂, from the combustion of fossil fuels in the unit, that is, during a calendar year, on average, greater than 420 tonnes of CO₂ emissions/GWh of energy produced, as applicable, beginning in

  • (a) the year after the unit’s end of useful life, if the initial performance test conducted under subsection 5(1) indicates a CO₂ emissions intensity greater than 600 t/GWh;

  • (b) the sixth year after the unit’s end of useful life, if the initial performance test conducted under subsection 5(1) indicates a CO₂ emissions intensity greater than 550 t/GWh and less than or equal to 600 t/GWh;

  • (c) the ninth year after the unit’s end of useful life, if the initial performance test conducted under subsection 5(1) indicates a CO₂ emissions intensity greater than 480 t/GWh and less than or equal to 550 t/GWh; or

  • (d) the eleventh year after the unit’s end of useful life, if the initial performance test conducted under subsection 5(1) results in a CO₂ emissions intensity less than or equal to 480 t/GWh.

• Marginal note:Quantification of energy and emissions

  (3) For the purposes of subsections (1) and (2),

  • (a) the quantity of energy produced in the calendar year must be determined in accordance with section 11; and

  • (b) the quantity of CO₂ emissions produced in the calendar year must be determined in accordance with sections 12 to 18, as applicable.

• Marginal note:Special Rules

  (4) For the purposes of subsection (3), if, in the calendar year, one of the combustion engines of the unit is repaired or maintained and one or more replacement combustion engines are temporarily installed, the quantity of energy and CO₂ emissions produced during the replacement period, to a maximum of 90 days per calendar year, are excluded from the calculation referred to in that paragraph.

• Marginal note:Exception — boiler unit

  (5) Despite subsection (1), a boiler unit that, in a calendar year, does not meet one of the conditions set out in subsection 3(1), is not subject to the emission intensity limit for that calendar year.

• Marginal note:Exception — combustion engine

  (6) Despite subsection (1), a combustion engine unit that, in a calendar year, does not meet one of the conditions set out in subsection 3(2), is not subject to the emission intensity limit for that calendar year.