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Alectra and Convergent have completed three Ontario battery energy storage projects with a combined capacity of 320MW/320MWh? No: the facilities total 80MW of power and 320MWh of storage. Separately, Rodan Energy has agreed to develop, own and operate a 50MWh behind-the-meter battery system at St. Marys Cement’s Bowmanville plant; its claim that the project will be Canada’s largest such installation has not been independently established in the source material.
Alectra and Convergent have completed three battery energy storage projects in Ontario with a combined 80MW of power and 320MWh of storage, while Rodan Energy Solutions is advancing a separate 50MWh system for St. Marys Cement in Bowmanville. The developments add battery capacity to Ontario’s electricity system and include a behind-the-meter project intended to manage a large industrial site’s electricity demand.
The completed portfolio consists of Vaughan 3 Energy Storage 1 LP, rated at 40MW/160MWh, and two 20MW/80MWh facilities: Vaughan 1E Energy 1 LP and Arlen Energy Storage 1 LP. Ontario Minister of Energy and Mines Stephen Lecce joined Alectra executives for a tour and ribbon-cutting at Vaughan 3. The event also included provincial, municipal and Independent Electricity System Operator representatives, including IESO President and CEO Jason Fitzsimmons.
Alectra and Convergent received 20-year contracts for the three projects through the IESO’s Expedited Long-Term 1 procurement. The source report says the procurement awarded contracts for more than 850MW of battery storage capacity across two tranches in May and June 2023. That is procurement capacity, distinct from the projects’ combined 80MW power rating and 320MWh energy-storage capacity.
In a separate development, Rodan announced a long-term agreement with St. Marys Cement Inc., part of Votorantim Cimentos North America, for a 50MWh battery system at the company’s Bowmanville facility. Under the agreement, Rodan will develop, own and operate the system and provide energy optimisation through its FlexOps platform. Rodan says it will fund development and take operational risk, with no upfront capital outlay for the cement company.
Batteries Serve Grid and Plant Needs
The projects show two ways battery storage can support Ontario’s electricity needs. The Alectra-Convergent portfolio was contracted through a provincial procurement, while Rodan’s system is designed for a specific industrial customer and will operate behind the meter, reducing the facility’s reliance on grid power at peak times.
Rodan says the Bowmanville batteries will charge during lower-demand periods and supply the plant during peak periods, helping manage electricity costs and demand on the grid. The company also says the project supports the cement maker’s sustainability roadmap, including a net-zero concrete goal for 2050 and interim 2030 targets. Those are stated aims; the supplied report does not quantify expected cost savings, emissions reductions or the system’s operating performance.
Behind-the-meter storage may also matter to grid planning because it can shift some customer demand without requiring the customer to stop essential operations. In September, Energy Storage Canada recommended a Distributed Reliability Track for behind-the-meter and distribution-connected storage in Ontario, arguing that compensation should reflect the grid services distributed energy resources provide.
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Ontario Storage Procurement Expands
The three completed Alectra-Convergent projects were selected through the IESO’s Expedited Long-Term 1 procurement, which sought new electricity resources. The source report also describes later procurement activity: in June 2026, the IESO secured 640MW of capacity through three projects selected in the capacity stream of its Second Long-Term Request for Proposals. The supplied material does not specify the completion date of the Alectra-Convergent portfolio, so the projects’ timing should not be inferred from that later procurement update.
Ontario’s LT2 process was announced in August 2024 and aimed to procure 3TWh of energy generation and 600MW of new capacity resources. The IESO also launched a Long Lead-Time request for proposals seeking up to 800MW of long-duration energy storage, according to the report. These procurements form the broader setting for the projects, but they are separate from the contracts already awarded to Alectra and Convergent.
Convergent, founded in 2011, has focused largely on commercial and industrial sites. In 2022 it deployed a 4MW/8MWh battery system at Ford Motor’s Ontario engine plant, intended to strategically reduce the facility’s electricity consumption. Rodan’s proposed 50MWh system is described as a behind-the-meter project, a category that can serve an individual facility while potentially offering flexibility to the wider grid.
“The Bowmanville system is the largest behind-the-meter battery energy storage installation in Canada to date.”
— Rodan Energy Solutions
Project Timelines and Results
The source material does not give a specific date when the three Alectra-Convergent facilities began operating or when the portfolio was formally completed. It also does not state when Rodan’s 50MWh Bowmanville system is expected to be built, commissioned or begin operating.
Rodan’s description of the project as Canada’s largest behind-the-meter battery installation is attributed to the company. The material does not identify a third-party assessment or provide a comparison of other Canadian installations. Forecast savings, emissions effects, operating arrangements and the precise grid services the project will provide also remain unspecified.
Construction and Procurement Milestones
The next concrete milestone for the Rodan project is development and installation at the Bowmanville cement facility; no construction or commissioning schedule is included in the source report. Further public details would clarify the system’s operating timeline, expected performance and how Rodan will optimise charging and discharge through FlexOps.
For Ontario’s wider storage pipeline, future developments depend on the IESO’s long-term procurement processes and the projects selected through them. The source material reports procurement targets and selections but does not set out a schedule for the next award or provide additional milestones for the completed Alectra-Convergent facilities.
Key Questions
How much storage did Alectra and Convergent complete?
The three facilities total 80MW of power capacity and 320MWh of energy storage. Their individual ratings are 40MW/160MWh at Vaughan 3 and 20MW/80MWh each at Vaughan 1E and Arlen.
What is Rodan building in Bowmanville?
Rodan has a long-term agreement to develop, own and operate a 50MWh behind-the-meter battery system at St. Marys Cement’s Bowmanville plant. The source material does not give a construction or commissioning date.
Will the Bowmanville battery reduce electricity costs?
Rodan says the system will help reduce grid demand during peak periods by charging when demand is lower and supplying the plant at peak times. The source does not provide a quantified savings forecast, so the scale of any cost reduction is not specified.
Is Rodan’s project confirmed as Canada’s largest behind-the-meter battery?
Rodan describes it as Canada’s largest behind-the-meter installation, but that ranking is a company claim in the supplied material and is not independently verified there.
How were the Alectra-Convergent projects contracted?
The IESO awarded Alectra and Convergent 20-year contracts through its Expedited Long-Term 1 procurement. The three projects together have 80MW of power capacity and 320MWh of storage.
Source: energy-storage.news
