Capacity Allocation Model

Background: What is CAM?

The Capacity Allocation Model (CAM) is a regulatory methodology established by the Ontario Energy Board (OEB) to promote efficient and fair allocation of system expansion costs in qualifying development areas, thereby facilitating housing development connections.

Under CAM:

• Developers connecting to the expanded distribution system contribute proportionally based on their requested load capacity instead of the entire expansion cost,
• Capital contributions are forecasted over the CAM term of 15 years and need to be paid within the CAM term,
• Customers connecting after the first year will be required to pay a financing charge to protect early contributors and electricity ratepayers,
• Binding financial commitments (e.g. – letter of credit) will be required for any committed capacity

Eligibility Criteria

CAM applies to projects meeting all of the following OEB-defined criteria:

• A large geographic area mainly planned for residential developments along with other customer connections (parks, plaza, school, small businesses) requiring shared infrastructure, with majority of the load from residential customers,
• Involves significant system expansion and investments (long feeder lines, HV transformers or distribution stations) to deliver capacity,
• More than one developer can be expected to connect in the area over more than a single year, and not up to 15 years in the future, and will include additional development and expansion requirements based on municipal official plans and secondary plans,
• Development plans have reached a level of maturity between the parties involved that enables Entegrus to begin planning the distribution infrastructure, and provides sufficient confirmed information to run the CAM calculations,
• A substantial portion of the agreed upon and committed security (letter of credit) has been submitted

If your project involves a single connection or does not meet any of the above criteria, standard expansion rules under Chapter 3 of the Distribution System Code (DSC) will apply.

CAM Methodology

The Ontario Energy Board (OEB) has issued the following guidelines for distributors on applying the Capacity Allocation Model: 
Distribution System Code - Appendix I

Our Load Allocation Standards

Entegrus uses the following standard demand values for residential connections:

Please provide details on your project's building types and electrification plans for an accurate CAM assessment.

Next Steps

Ready to discuss your project?

• Contact Us: Email engineering@entegrus.com for more information
• Resources: 
  • DSC Appendix I: Methodology for Implementing a Capacity Allocation Model
  • OEB Distribution System Code