Appendix E: Policy Coverage
As a power systems model, COPPER covers a number of key federal and provincial policies related to clean and renewable technologies, or the retirement of emitting power plants such as those fueled by natural gas or coal. This appendix covers the basic steps for setting-up the policies implemented in the model.
The main policies currently included in COPPER and addressed in its optimization algorithm are listed as follows.
- Investment tax credits (ITCs) for a clean economy
- Output-Based Pricing System (OBPS)
- Clean electricity regulations (CER)
Investment Tax Credits
This policy is not implemented by default in the model and needs to be turned on by the user. To set-up investment tax credits in COPPER, the user will need to adjust a few parameters in the configuration file, and some input files. Follow the table below to apply ITCs to your scenario.
| Parameter | File | Value Needed to Apply Policy | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| flag_itc | config.toml | true or True | Enables the policy from the configuration side |
| factor_itc | config.toml | 1 - ITC credit to be applied | Example: to apply a 30% credit, set this value to 0.7 |
| ITC support? | generation_type_data.csv | TRUE | Sets the ITC credits for the technology type |
Output-Based Pricing System Regulations
This policy is implemented by default in the model, but may be turned off by the user as desired. To set-up the output-based pricing system regulations in COPPER, the user will need to adjust a few parameters in the configuration file, and some input files. Follow the table below to apply the OBPS to your scenario.
| Parameter | File | Value Needed to Apply Policy | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| OBPS_on | config.toml | true or True | Set to true by default |
| tightening | obps_standards.csv | Value between 0 and 1 | Tightening rate to be applied to the respective fuel type in the assigned region during the corresponding period (time step). |
| standard | obps_standards.csv | OBPS standard of the corresponding province | Tightening rate to be applied to the respective fuel type in the assigned region during the corresponding period (time step). |
Clean Electricity Regulations
This policy is not implemented by default in the model and needs to be turned on by the user. To set-up the clean electricity regulations in COPPER, the user will need to adjust a few parameters in the configuration file, and some input files. Follow the table below to apply the clean electricity regulations to your scenario.
| Parameter | File | Value Needed to Apply Policy | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| flag_cer | config.toml | true or True | Enables the policy from the configuration side |
| max_em_limit | config.toml | Any value greater than zero | Maximum emission limit for periods prior to 2050 in units of tonnes of CO2 per mega-watt-hour (tCO2/MWh) with offsets included |
| max_em_limit_2050 | config.toml | Any value greater than zero | Maximum emission limit for the 2050 period in units of tonnes of CO2 per mega-watt-hour (tCO2/MWh) with offsets included |
| offset | config.toml | Any value greater than zero | Emission intensity above which emissions are priced at full carbon price |
Phase out Policies
COPPER is able to model other policies which aim at phasing out specific power plant types. The provincial_phase_out.csv input file allows the user to control the year (COPPER period) by which a specific technology must be discontinued in a province when the provincial_phase_out flag from the configuration file is set to true; this is particularly useful for modeling British Columbia's natural gas phase-out as part of the cleanBC roadmap to 2030, but may also be used to implement future provincial phase out policies. The thermal_phase_out flag from the configuration file on the other hand implements the federal coal phase out policies in the model for all technologies controled by the phase_out_type_year parameter.