Submitted from electricity providers across Canada, Electricity Canada’s Centre of Excellence is a collection of projects that demonstrate innovation, leadership and positive community impact. It celebrates the ways the electricity sector can transform people and communities, and it highlights the ingenuity and creativity of the Canadian electricity industry.
“The eight new projects inducted into Electricity Canada’s Centre of Excellence for 2025 represent significant Canadian 'firsts' for the electricity industry." Said Francis Bradley, Electricity Canada’s President and CEO. “Whether that be implementing new grid modernization technologies, clean energy initiatives, creative customer campaigns or innovative approaches to dealing with wildfires, our members are at the cutting edge.”
“This year’s Centre of Excellence inductees show what we are capable of doing as an industry.”
The 2025 Centre of Excellence inductees, selected by an independent judging panel, includes:
AltaLink:Situational Awareness Portal (ASAP)
ASAP is an innovative tool that consolidates real-time data, including weather, fire conditions, and system impacts, into a single map-based interface to support emergency response. As part of AltaLink’s Wildfire Mitigation Program, ASAP improves decision-making, shortens outage durations, and helps protect communities in Alberta during extreme weather events.
FortisAlberta: Employing Technology to Improve Customer Experience in Solar Interconnection
FortisAlberta responded to a 925% surge in residential solar interconnection requests from 2021-2024 by launching PowerClerk, an automated intake platform. PowerClerk drastically reduced review times and improved efficiency for a quick connection. They are the first Canadian utility to deploy this advanced intake software for microgeneration.
SaskPower: Descharme Lake Microgrid
The Descharme Lake Microgrid is Saskatchewan’s first solar-battery-diesel system, providing reliable, sustainable electricity to a remote northern community while replacing a costly, aging power line. Built entirely by local and Indigenous teams, the microgrid now meets 80% of the community’s energy needs with solar and battery power.
NB Power: Shediac Smart Energy Community
NB Power’s first grid-connected solar farm in Shediac supplies clean electricity to two net-zero buildings and feeds excess power into the local grid, supporting sustainability and affordability. The broader Shediac Smart Energy Community Project also tested smart technologies in 500 homes, helping residents save energy and informing future programs to reduce consumption and lower bills.
Alectra Utilities: Centricity
Centricity is Canada’s first comprehensive end-to-end Distribution System Operator (DSO) model, integrating planning, operations, and local energy markets to modernize the electricity grid. This approach ensures that customer participation, system reliability, and regulatory innovation are working together to improve utility operations.
Ontario Power Generation: Recast Nuclear
OPG’s “Recast Nuclear” communications campaign used pop culture and entertainment to reshape public perceptions of nuclear energy, positioning it as a key player in Ontario’s clean energy future.
Newfoundland Power: Powering Service Innovation
In 2025, Newfoundland Power launched “Alex,” a 24/7 generative AI-powered virtual assistant on their website as a modern avatar. They are among the first Canadian utilities to enhance customer service by using generative AI as an interactive tool providing real-time support for account inquiries, outages, and FAQs.
BC Hydro: Rapid Build-out of Public EV Charging Network
The public EV charging network tripled the number of fast-charging ports in just one year, dramatically improving accessibility and reducing wait times across British Columbia. With innovations like 350-kW chargers, First Nations-hosted sites, and high customer satisfaction, the project sets a new standard for clean transportation infrastructure in North America.
Electricity Canada inducted eight new innovative projects into its Centre of Excellence at its Powering Partnerships summit in Vancouver on November 25, 2025.