Settlements

Commodity Charges

Ontario Price (introduced on May 1, 2025)

The Ontario Electricity Market Price, or Ontario Price, is charged to local distribution companies (LDCs) and other non-dispatchable loads. It forms the basis of the commodity charges in the retail electricity market and comprises the Day-Ahead Ontario Zonal Price (DA-OZP) and the Load Forecast Deviation Adjustment (LFDA).

The Day-Ahead Ontario Zonal Price is the load-weighted average of all day-ahead locational marginal prices (LMPs) calculated for non-dispatchable loads (NDLs) in Ontario.

The Load Forecast Deviation Adjustment (LFDA) is the total value of the IESO’s forecast deviation for all NDLs in $/MWh for a given settlement hour.

Note: Dispatchable load and price-responsive load pay the Locational Marginal Price. 

Locational Marginal Prices (LMPs)

Locational Marginal Prices (LMPs) reflect the value of energy at different locations on the system, accounting for system constraints and losses.

Generators, dispatchable loads, price-responsive Loads, and intertie traders are paid or charged the day-ahead market scheduled quantity for energy and operating reserve at the applicable day-ahead market locational marginal price on an hourly basis.

Real-time locational marginal prices are used to settle differences between day-head schedules and real-time dispatch.

HOEP (retired April 30, 2025)

The Hourly Ontario Energy Price (HOEP) was the hourly price that is charged to local distribution companies and other non-dispatchable loads. It was discontinued on April 30, with the transition to a single schedule market.

Global Adjustment Class B Rate

The Global Adjustment includes:

• Payments based on the difference between market prices and:
  • Regulated rates for Ontario Power Generation’s nuclear and hydroelectric generating stations;
  • Payments for building or refurbishing infrastructure as well as the contracted rates paid to a number of generators across the province;
  • The cost of energy efficiency and demand side management programs.

Note: Class A customers who participate in Industrial Conservation Initiative pay a Global Adjustment rate based on their contribution to the top five Ontario peaks over a 12-month period.

Wholesale Market Service Charges

Line losses and transmission congestion costs are no longer included in the Wholesale Market Service Charge and now used in the calculation of market prices.

Hourly Uplifts

Market participants may incur a lost cost or lost opportunity cost when they receive a real-time schedule that deviates from its economic operating point.

These uplifts include the cost of:

• Operating Reserve
• Real-Time Intertie Offer Guarantees
• make whole payments incurred to compensate dispatchable resources (dispatchable loads, energy traders participating with boundary entity resources, dispatchable electricity storage resources, and dispatchable generation) for lost cost and lost opportunity cost in the real-time market when following IESO dispatch instructions

Daily Uplifts

Daily uplifts include costs incurred for losses associated with day-ahead schedule when it is greater than their economic operating point. These uplifts are used to recover the costs to commit generators with GOG-eligible resources in the day-ahead and real-time markets and to compensate dispatchable resources (dispatchable loads, energy traders participating with boundary entity resources, dispatchable electricity storage resources, and dispatchable generation) and price-responsive loads.

Monthly Uplifts

Monthly costs cover the services required to ensure the reliability of the Ontario grid and to meet commitments to other system operators throughout North America. This includes Black Start Capability, Voltage Support, and Regulation Service. Monthly uplift costs are shared amongst all wholesale customers on a pro rata basis.

IESO Administration Fee

The IESO charges an administrative fee to operate the wholesale electricity market and manage the high voltage power system in Ontario. There are two separate rates for the IESO Administration Fee, one applied to domestic transactions and another to export transactions. The rate is set by the Ontario Energy Board.

Rural and Remote Electricity Rate Protection

This charge helps to offset the higher cost of providing service to consumers in rural and remote areas.

Class B Capacity Based Recovery

This charge includes demand response auction and other demand response programs.

Wholesale Transmission Charge

This charge to LDCs and some large consumers covers the cost incurred by transmission companies to construct and maintain the high-voltage transmission lines needed to transport electricity from generating stations to LDCs or consumers. It encompasses the Network Charge, the Connection Charge and the Line and Transformation Charge. The rate for this service is approved by the Ontario Energy Board.