Ontario cancels plans to build two natural gas power plants more than a decade later ford govt A new era of fossil-fuelled electricity is set to begin.
An expansion of gas power — since former chief Dalton McGuinty ditched two controversial gas plants in 2011 — could be built on Windsor’s Detroit River waterfront after the city’s council voted to support plans for two new gas turbines. Voted.
Capital Power, the company behind the city’s existing gas plant, hopes to build two new gas-powered turbines, generating approximately 100 megawatts of electricity each.
If successful, the project could begin construction in the fourth quarter of 2024 and open by December 2025.
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The pitch comes as Ontario scrambles for new sources of electricity, facing potential shortfalls in both 2020 and 2030.
Last year, the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO), the body responsible for purchasing electricity in the province, warned that, without short-term increases in gas power, Ontario could face rotating blackouts.
In a statement Tuesday, IESO told Global News that “some active purchases” related to Ontario’s gas power expansion were underway, though it did not confirm whether Windsor was among them.
“Long-term procurement has been initiated for new supply and we are also seeking expansion and upgrades from existing facilities,” IESO said.
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Windsor’s status as the first potential jurisdiction in Ontario to accept new gas power comes despite a resolution passed by local councilors in November 2020 calling for a phase-out of gas power.
That momentum was effectively reversed on Monday, when the council approved plans for two new gas-powered electric turbines in the city.
Jan Jandal Alrifai, of the Windsor Essex Youth Climate Council, told councilors on Monday: “The least we can expect from you is that you will actually do what you said you would.”
She said she had a chance to “be a leader” on the issue of green electricity, but her plea ultimately fell on deaf ears.
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Windsor was one of 34 municipalities that signed a resolution by the Ontario Clean Air Alliance calling for Ontario to phase out gas-powered electricity.
However, instead of phasing out natural gas, the province plans to increase its reliance on fossil fuels to 1,500 megawatts in the late 2020s to address a feared shortage.
A provincial spokesperson told Global News, “In addition to producing limited amounts of natural gas … the province has launched the largest purchase of clean energy storage in the country’s history.”
In October, Energy Minister Todd Smith said a significant portion of electricity demand would come from southwestern Ontario, where demand from the auto sector and agriculture would increase.
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The Ford government stipulated that new or expanded gas plants be located only in communities that agreed to host them — something Windsor did on Monday night.
“Any community that gets a gas plant will be a willing host community and that will be decided first,” Smith told Global News at the time.
Global News contacted the 34 municipalities that the Ontario Clean Air Alliance approved of their proposal against gas power; Only 13 answered the questions sent in October 2022.
Some, including Guelph and Burlington, said their opposition to gas power was firm.
A Guelph spokesperson reiterated the city’s opposition, saying, “The city has concerns about the expansion of natural gas generation plants to generate electricity because it will increase our carbon footprint.”
Others, such as St. Catharines, indicate requests will be evaluated as they come in.
Windsor’s support of expanded gas power drew sharp criticism from Jack Gibbons, president of the Ontario Clean Air Alliance.
He said, ‘We are going in the wrong direction. “It doesn’t make sense for Windsor, and it doesn’t make sense for Ontario.”
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In the wrong direction or not, this is where the province is heading — at least in the short term.
An October directive issued by the Ford government ordered IESO to expedite its process, purchasing gas power from companies that are “capable of achieving commercial operation as quickly as possible.”
Advocates fear that Windsor will be the first of many areas to accept new or expanded gas power.
“It’s very alarming that we’re seeing these proposals coming out, and it’s because the Ontario government is pushing for new gas production,” Lana Goldberg, Ontario climate program manager at Environmental Defense, told Global News.
“We’re going to see these proposals in other municipalities, possibly in Toronto, Halton Hills, Sarnia, Brampton. And it’s the exact opposite direction we should be going.”
The Ford government said the return of new gas power generation for the first time in more than a decade is a temporary setback in Ontario’s plan to completely green the grid.
“We’re still committed to a 100 percent clean grid, but in the meantime to make sure we still have the power we need … we’re going to have some increases in natural gas in the short term,” Smith previously told Global News.
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