The Industrial Power Consumers Association of Alberta (IPCAA) is an organization representing large industrial loads in the Province of Alberta. Our objective is to ensure the positive development of the electricity industry in Alberta by taking a leadership role in achieving a fair, open and efficient marketplace for electricity sales and services in Alberta. We operate a strategic planning process, an educated and informed membership, active lobbying with other industry stakeholders before the Provincial Government, as well as through extensive and comprehensive interventions in relevant regulatory proceedings.
IPCAA is a membership based organization. Our members are involved in oil sands development, oil and gas exploration and development, oil and gas pipeline transportation, forest products and pulp and paper production, steel and petrochemical manufacturing, and other key Alberta industries. Together, IPCAA represents 35% of Alberta’s net system load (approximately 25TWh) that translates to $2-3 billion per year of electricity-related costs in generation, transmission, and distribution.
In recent years, Alberta’s electric industry has undergone significant restructuring leading to the deregulation of the power generation sector and major changes in transmission service. Although these major changes have been made, there is continuous evolution and fine-tuning, which can have significant impacts on electricity costs. IPCAA has been actively involved in all aspects of the restructuring process to strive toward our mission of taking a leadership role in achieving a fair, open and efficient marketplace for electricity sales and service in Alberta. Our recent action includes influencing policy development, power pool operations and transmission issues.
Executive Director
Vittoria Bellissimo was appointed Executive Director, effective January 1, 2012. Vittoria is pleased to take on this exciting role to represent and promote active load-side participation in electricity markets. She brings to the organization a wealth of experience and knowledge in the energy sector as well as in government relations.
Previously, Vittoria was a Project Manager in Market Structure at the Ontario Power Authority, and had roles in procurement at the Ontario Ministry of Energy, renewable energy research at the Scottish Parliament, and Construction IT at the University of Maribor, Slovenia.
Vittoria has a M.Sc. in Environmental Sustainability from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland and a B.Sc. in Mathematics and Engineering from Queen’s University, Canada. She is also a licensed Professional Engineer (Ontario).
Policy and Regulatory Consultant
Jake C.T. Cheng was appointed Policy and Regulatory Consultant, effective February 4, 2012. Jake is excited to take on this role and looks forward to actively engage in policy, regulatory, and market issues. In addition, he will play a supportive role under the Executive Director and manage the day-to-day operations of the organization.
Prior to this role, Jake was a Analyst in Market Structure at the Ontario Power Authority. He has had experiences in many analytical tasks such as looking at the different pricing scenarios based on different portfolio structures of forward electricity contracts.
Jake has a M.A.Sc. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies and a B.A.Sc. in Engineering Science from the University of Toronto.