Energate, Inc. has been contracted for deployment as part of Ontario’s enhanced and funded RDR program. The program, which is available to all of Ontario’s electric utilities, is designed to reduce demand during periods of peak usage to minimize stress on the electric grid.  Participating consumers will also benefit with energy-saving tools and technology. 

With the required approvals now in place, Energate’s load management software and its CORE middleware are now available to all aggregators and local distribution companies throughout the province of Ontario providing utility load-control integration with Energate’s portfolio of consumer technologies.  A comprehensive software agreement has been signed with Mississauga-based Rodan Energy Solutions, the province’s residential demand response operator and aggregator. 

The late December Agreements concluded an extensive process where Energate proved its flexibility to provide solutions for all types of utility and consumers with a province-wide solution. The Ontario approvals came after competitively bidding and delivering a successful pilot of Energate’s Consumer-Connected Demand Response (CCDR) platform, which includes in-home smart thermostats, load control switches and consumer information displays offering multiple communications options, along with comprehensive and versatile management software for both the utility and the consumer.  The pilot enabled selected residents in Peterborough, Hamilton, Kitchener-Waterloo and Cambridge to control their home energy utilization via the Internet and securely access smart meter data.  During the pilot, residents were able to reduce their electric utility bills by as much as 30 percent by utilizing simple control settings. 

Energate’s approval encompasses use of its demand response software by the province’s aggregators and use of its in-home energy management hardware by Ontario utilities and consumers over multiple secure communications options.  The communications options include one-way pager networks, advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) networks, and high-capacity two-way broadband.  Broadband provides a low-latency, data-rich experience option for consumers without increasing the burden on the utility’s AMI network.  Broadband also provides for load management verification, something that one-way pager networks cannot.