A scary and often well-deserved joke is: “We’re from the government, and we’re here to help”.
And that is the summary of the previous provincial Liberal government’s failed attempts at promoting renewable energy projects in Ontario. Consider this:
- In 2010 the Liberals sole-source-selected South Korea’s Samsung to provide $9B of too-expensive renewable energy. As noted in this article, due to public pressure, in 2013, this was reduced by billions of dollars, for example by reducing the 20-year cost of power from wind turbines from 13.5 ¢/kW•h, to perhaps 10.5 ¢/kW•h sometime in the future. But, as reported here, a recent competitive procurement for wind power in Alberta was for only 3.7 ¢/kW•h. The Bala proponent would receive a 40-year contract that requires the government to pay over 17 ¢/kW•h for power even when it isn’t needed.
- In 2014 the Liberals thought that by giving an $850M contract to Siemens, it would magically create a wind turbine blade industry in Ontario. As reported here, all this resulted in is the Ontario-based plant shutting down a few years later when that work was completed – and 340 people losing their jobs.
What the Liberals didn’t understand is that business is sustainable only in an open and competitive environment. While the Liberals claimed the Bala proponent was selected through a competitive process, the fact is Swift River Energy Limited (which was created solely to pursue this one opportunity) was the only compliant bid received, so there was no competition. That bad procurement has resulted in the bad proposed project in Bala.
The proposed Bala project has only proceeded through:
- The proponent hiring lobbyists and paying for direct access to influence Premier Kathleen Wynne and other Liberal Ministers.
- Intimidation through legal actions.
- Secret government communications.
- Providing conflicting information to approval agencies, and lying to the public.
The proposed Bala project:
- Got this far only through secret back-room deals and lying.
- Would produce unneeded power that would be far too expensive.
- Would drown unsuspecting tourists.
It is time to stop this disgusting relic of the Liberal’s failed energy policies.