Small Business Program energy upgrades in Ontario
Free assessments and programme-installed lighting, refrigeration and smart thermostat upgrades for eligible Ontario business facilities with 50 or fewer employees on site.
Esta oportunidade está atualmente disponível em inglês.
The Small Business Program upgrades existing equipment in commercial, institutional and agricultural facilities and multi-family buildings. The programme arranges procurement and installation through its contractors; you receive the equipment upgrades rather than an unrestricted cash payment.
For a first-time participant at a facility that has not received the relevant earlier programme upgrades, support covers up to CAD 3,000 of lighting work and up to CAD 2,500 of non-lighting work. These separate amounts cannot be combined or transferred between categories. Eligible procurement and installation within the applicable amount are free, including Electrical Safety Authority fees, which count towards that amount.
If you choose eligible work above the applicable amount, standard incentives may reduce the additional equipment and installation cost. You pay the remaining cost and applicable electrical-safety fees directly to the programme contractor. Your work order sets out the eligible equipment, costs, incentives and your contribution.
Eligibility
- You must be an Ontario business that owns or leases the premises. Commercial, institutional and agricultural facilities and multi-family buildings can qualify. Tenants need the landlord’s or building owner’s consent and must have authority to install the equipment.
- The facility must be connected to Ontario’s electricity grid or a connected distribution system. It must have no more than 50 employees on site at any point when operating at full capacity.
- You must not be a residential electricity-distribution customer, unless you are a Recognized Farm Operation: a farm property with a six- or seven-digit farm business registration number administered by Agricorp.
- The amounts described here concern first-time participants and facilities. If your facility has participated in the Small Business Lighting, Small Business, Refrigeration Efficiency, Business Refrigeration Incentive or RTUsaver programmes, contact the programme team to confirm eligibility and remaining incentives before relying on these amounts. Previous participation does not automatically rule out every upgrade.
- The selected upgrades must be on the programme’s Eligible Measures List and meet its technical requirements. They must be purchased and installed on or after 4 May 2026 under the current requirements. You cannot receive other Ontario ratepayer- or taxpayer-funded incentives, or manufacturer, wholesaler or other supply-chain rebates, for the same measures.
You must sign the participant agreement and work order before installation, allow the programme contractor access and complete installation within one year of signing the work order. The programme can refuse work because of eligibility, safety, limited electricity savings or unavailable funds.
Keep the installed equipment for its expected service life unless it fails, and do not move, tamper with, disable or damage it. Allow the programme to remove replaced equipment and provide access, relevant records and documentation for surveys, audits, inspections and verification. Owners or operators of rental units covered by Ontario’s Residential Tenancies Act cannot use these funded upgrades as grounds for an above-guideline rent increase.
Rights to environmental credits or similar benefits from electricity savings are divided between IESO and the participant in proportion to IESO’s funding share. Before selling, transferring or using any participant-owned share, notify IESO in writing with the quantities and supporting calculations.
How to apply
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Request a free on-site assessment through the programme’s online signup, by calling 1-833-825-7283 or by emailing info@smallbusinessprogram.ca. The delivery team identifies eligible upgrades, and you can accept or reject the options before installation.
Review and sign the participant agreement and work order before the programme’s qualified delivery partner installs the equipment. You must sign the work order again when installation is complete. If lighting and non-lighting work are offered in separate work orders, sign both before either installation is completed if you want both: an unsigned second work order normally cannot be reapplied for later, unless IESO or its delivery agent approves an exception.