Costly hydro towers sit idle | Canada | News | Toronto Sun
The Toronto Sun reports on a stalled transmission line that explains a paragraph for the recent IESO 18-month outlook that had me puzzled. It stated:
5.3.3 Niagara Zone
The completion date for transmission reinforcements from the Niagara region into the Hamilton-Burlington area continues to be delayed. This delay impacts the use of the available Ontario generation in the Niagara area, particularly during hot weather and high demand periods. The failed R76 voltage regulator and the BP76 circuit are expected to return to service by the end of 2012. This bypass will remain available for use if required until the R76 voltage regulator returns.
This leaves the opposite impression of the Sun article - but that doesn't mean the Independent Electricity System Operator is the more reliable source. Sir Adam Beck Generating Stations is in Niagara, and it seems more likely the transmission line is to move power into the rest of Ontario than it is Niagara Falls is needing power from Hamilton. With Surplus Baseload Generation continuing to grow as a problem as our supply mix becomes increasingly irrational, it also may be needed to get more excess power to market in New York State, but the expansion of the generating capacity in Niagara Falls (the Big Becky project) must be related to more transmission capacity.
The Sun article states a Caledonia aboriginal land claim. It might be legally true - but the Six Nations know they aren't native to the area.
This is a property dispute.
Cold Air Currents: Articles of interest
Monday, February 28, 2011
Solar Outlook in Ontario
Right on time - here's one indication of the hand wringing going on in Ontario on uncertainty over the dependability of being gifted subsidies.
Ontario regulatory uncertainty clouds solar power market, report - POWER-GEN WorldWide
The latest IESO 18-Month Outlook predicts a winter peak of 22,391MW, and a summer peak of 23,574. The additional summer generation requirement, 1,183MW, could come from solar, as the summer peak time is in the middle of the afternoon. The first 22,391MW, for winter peak, must come from other sources, as winter peak is in the evening.
The linked article notes "2,450 MW of existing solar contracts." That's twice as much as a sane policy would dictate.
Ontario regulatory uncertainty clouds solar power market, report - POWER-GEN WorldWide
The latest IESO 18-Month Outlook predicts a winter peak of 22,391MW, and a summer peak of 23,574. The additional summer generation requirement, 1,183MW, could come from solar, as the summer peak time is in the middle of the afternoon. The first 22,391MW, for winter peak, must come from other sources, as winter peak is in the evening.
The linked article notes "2,450 MW of existing solar contracts." That's twice as much as a sane policy would dictate.
Looking for a Sugar Daddy
Reuters has an article today noting pending cutbacks to the solar subsidy level in England, "Solar ‘Gold Rush’ in U.K. May Die With Incentive Roll-Back.”
The article notes the impact of similar roll-backs in Spain and the Czech Republic – they could also have added Germany as it has struggled to contain solar growth to a level their grid can handle.
From Ontario, what is most striking is the hysterical final paragraphs mirror the apocalyptic tone of the overly incentivized here:
The article notes the impact of similar roll-backs in Spain and the Czech Republic – they could also have added Germany as it has struggled to contain solar growth to a level their grid can handle.
From Ontario, what is most striking is the hysterical final paragraphs mirror the apocalyptic tone of the overly incentivized here:
Lie, Lie, Lie
A article by Christopher Booker at the Daily Mail is titled, “Why the £250bn wind power industry could be the greatest scam of our age - and here are the three 'lies' that prove it”
The 3 lies noted in the article are:
MPP Jim Wilson Writes on Electricity Policy
"It's time for families to take some power back" includes many complex points in a very brief article.
One question for the PC's I continue to have - why not introduce an option of real-time pricing (RPP) for the smart meters? Mr. Wilson does cite the inequity of charging peak use rates when there is no peak use (spring and fall). That begs the question, why not allow people of having the market dictate their price - instead of the clock?
One question for the PC's I continue to have - why not introduce an option of real-time pricing (RPP) for the smart meters? Mr. Wilson does cite the inequity of charging peak use rates when there is no peak use (spring and fall). That begs the question, why not allow people of having the market dictate their price - instead of the clock?
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Ont. electricity rates expected to rise next week - Business - CBC News
Ont. electricity rates expected to rise next week - Business - CBC News
CAMECO's 2010 financials confirm a 2009 rate of $64/MWh was followed by only a $58/MWh rate in 2010 at Bruce Power - and it's projected to deline again in 2011 as wind continues to gut the market price - negatively impacting reliable suppliers.
The downward pressure on prices also impacts OPG's hydro assets, as a little under half of their production is unregulated hydro also cheapened by the market impact of unreliable wind supply guaranteed purchase priority.
CAMECO's 2010 financials confirm a 2009 rate of $64/MWh was followed by only a $58/MWh rate in 2010 at Bruce Power - and it's projected to deline again in 2011 as wind continues to gut the market price - negatively impacting reliable suppliers.
The downward pressure on prices also impacts OPG's hydro assets, as a little under half of their production is unregulated hydro also cheapened by the market impact of unreliable wind supply guaranteed purchase priority.
TheStar Electricity prices to rise again as OPG seeks 6.2 per cent hike
TheStar Electricity prices to rise again as OPG seeks 6.2 per cent hike
OPG is getting a lot of resistance to this.
I've put together a graph to illustrate that they are the low cost producer - the blue bar is the average price in the wholesale market, and the maroon bar is OPG.
OPG is about 60% of market supply, and about another 20% is Bruce Power, a nuclear supplier that sells to the market at a little under the market rate. The difference between the OPG rate and the Wholesale rate is therefore reflective of how much money is denied the public generation company to subsidize private wind/natural gas/ and solar suppliers.
OPG is getting a lot of resistance to this.
I've put together a graph to illustrate that they are the low cost producer - the blue bar is the average price in the wholesale market, and the maroon bar is OPG.
OPG is about 60% of market supply, and about another 20% is Bruce Power, a nuclear supplier that sells to the market at a little under the market rate. The difference between the OPG rate and the Wholesale rate is therefore reflective of how much money is denied the public generation company to subsidize private wind/natural gas/ and solar suppliers.
There’s a real problem, a real issue, with hydro rates in Ontario
Mr. Howard Hampton: Recently, Cliffs Natural Resources, the mining company interested in developing the chromite deposits in the Ring of Fire region 500 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, released their study dealing with some of the mining issues, the transportation issues and the smelter refinery issues. What got people’s attention was Cliffs’s opinion that a smelter refinery located in Ontario would be unlikely because Ontario’s hydro electricity rates are too high. Since then, the McGuinty Liberals have issued press release after press release in an attempt to discredit Cliffs Natural Resources’ comments.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Ontario is More Than Smart Meters ...
Ontario is more than smart meters: at the smart grid core, we thrive
Tyler Hamilton's entry, of a company building products to meet needs, is good.
Combined with some of the recent activity at both his own blog, cleanbreak.ca, and at the smartgridnews.com site that appears to me as both an excellent source of information, and a sales tool for the smart grid industry, it also illustrates why I feel Ontario's initial presentation of a smart grid is a failure.
Tyler Hamilton's entry, of a company building products to meet needs, is good.
Combined with some of the recent activity at both his own blog, cleanbreak.ca, and at the smartgridnews.com site that appears to me as both an excellent source of information, and a sales tool for the smart grid industry, it also illustrates why I feel Ontario's initial presentation of a smart grid is a failure.
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