Following a decision from the Ontario Energy Board approving the program, GrandBridge Energy is moving forward with GridShare, its local Non-Wires Solutions capacity auction program designed to help manage growing electricity demand in the Cambridge and North Dumfries areas.
GridShare uses customer participation, distributed energy resources, and demand flexibility to help reduce pressure on the local electricity grid during periods of peak demand. Through the program, eligible commercial and industrial customers and aggregators can provide local capacity by temporarily reducing electricity use or using behind-the-meter energy resources such as batteries or on-site generation.
The program follows months of planning, collaboration, and customer engagement by the GrandBridge Energy team. Registration for the inaugural capacity auction opened on January 12, 2026, and closed on April 24, 2026, generating strong interest from customers and energy services aggregators.
Offers received through the auction exceeded GrandBridge Energy’s first-year target of 5 MW of demand flexibility capacity, demonstrating customer interest in playing an active role in supporting local grid reliability and future capacity needs.
“GridShare allows GrandBridge Energy to work directly with customers and aggregators to access flexible capacity during periods when the local grid needs additional support,” said Umar Waqas, Vice-President, Grid Modernization. “This approach helps manage local capacity constraints while giving customers an opportunity to participate in the future of the electricity grid.”
The 2026 GridShare operating period is expected to run from July to September. Subject to execution of participant agreements, selected participants may be called upon during peak demand periods to reduce electricity usage or rely on behind-the-meter energy resources to lessen their draw on the local grid.
GridShare represents an important milestone in GrandBridge Energy’s work to advance practical Non-Wires Solutions and build stronger partnerships with customers as part of local grid modernization.
