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 Posté le: Mar Oct 01, 2013 3:30 am Sujet du message: Independent power projects a gift to private indus |
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{Independent power projects a gift to private industry and a curse to taxpayers: NDP}
One private energy critic argues wind farms aren’t as environmentally friendly as many believe, nor do they make money for the B.C. government.By Sean KolenkoTue Aug 6, 2013 12:01am PSTPart 2 of 2Expanding the private sector’s ability to build and manage expensive energy projects such as run of river and wind developments wasn’t a shrewd move by the BC Liberal government to establish sources of stable,[url=http://www.moncler-sale.org]moncler down jackets[/url], renewable power for the future, New Democratic Party energy critic John Horgan told Business in Vancouver.Rather,[url=http://www.moncler-sale.org]moncler sale[/url], it was a make-work project by Gordon Campbell’s government in the early 2000s to stimulate private business that grossly overestimated energy demand both in the province and south of the border where Campbell envisioned selling renewable power at a premium rate. The proof is that B.C. has a surplus of energy and the cost of electricity on the spot market is not even one-quarter the cost BC Hydro is required to pay for electricity from many independent power producers, Horgan said.Currently, electricity on the spot market costs about $35 per megawatt hour. BC Hydro is paying between $100 and $120 per megawatt hour to some independent producers. More than 70 contracts were signed with independent power producers in 2010, the last call for independent energy contracts.In 2011-12, BC Hydro spent more than $650 million on electricity from independent projects.“Mr. Campbell’s plan was to simply give companies long-term energy contracts,[url=http://www.moncler-sale.org]moncler outlet[/url],” said Horgan.“So here we are with more power than we need,[url=http://www.moncler-sale.org]discount moncler jackets[/url], at a price that is way above the market. It’s as simple as that. They just didn’t read the market. We’re signing contracts and paying the private sector for power we do not need.”What’s more, Horgan added, is that many of the contracts signed with independent power producers weren’t made public and,[url=http://www.moncler-sale.org]moncler down jackets[/url], as a result, BC Hydro ratepayers didn’t know how much money they were paying.He cited auditor general John Doyle’s September 2011 report where Doyle criticized BC Hydro’s private power contracts, calling the deals a critical example of future costs that were not being reported clearly.“The Liberals are dragging us all across the trail with this file,” said Horgan.In addition to the expensive contracts, Marjorie Griffin Cohen, political science professor at Simon Fraser University, said deals with independent power producers also make the government vulnerable to significant trade challenges from foreign companies that don’t get a chance to sell electricity to BC Hydro.In a recent paper titled Assessing B.C. Electricity Policy since 2002 and the Government’s 2011 Review of BC Hydro, Cohen and co-author John Calvert highlight pulp producer Mercer International’s (NASDAQ:MERC) $250-million arbitration claim against the Government of Canada under the North American Free Trade Agreement.According to the claim, Mercer, which owns a large pulp mill near Castlegar, is accusing BC Hydro of discrimination for not allowing the mill to sell its biomass energy into the grid as others Canadian-owned mills are allowed to do. For example, BC Hydro signed a 15-year agreement with Nanaimo Forest Products Ltd. to purchase biomass power from its Harmac pulp mill located south of Nanaimo for“We’re losing on energy sales. But there are other threats as well. We will never get these independent power contracts under control,” said Cohen.The provincial government did not respond to requests for comment.Wind power not as “green” as you think: consultantA major selling feature of private, renewable energy projects is the belief that they are good for the environment.But what if a renewable energy source such as wind power doesn’t have the “green” credentials it’s thought to have?That’s the theory being put forth by energy consultant Martin Merritt, the former head of Alberta’s Market Surveillance Administration, the provincial watchdog on Alberta’s electricity and natural gas markets.According to Merritt,[url=http://www.moncler-sale.org]moncler on sale[/url],[url=http://www.moncler-sale.org]discount moncler jackets[/url], creating wind power in B.C. results in cutting down “swaths” of trees to connect them to transmission lines needed to power customers.But what’s more, Merritt said, wind power in B.C. does not displace a fossil-fuel-burning source. It displaces clean, and cheap, hydroelectric power.“Our government has instructed BC Hydro to purchase it,” said Merritt. “But it’s more expensive than we already have.”What Merritt proposes is not building any wind power in B.C. at all. Instead, he argues that wind power should be built in jurisdictions such as California where the U.S. government provides attractive subsidies to companies interested in building such power.But because wind power is intermittent, California will need to purchase stable backup power. That’s where B.C. comes in. Because B.C. has reliable hydroelectric energy, it should sell that power to the U.S. rather than being forced to buy intermittent power from local wind producers.“The planet does not care whether wind power is built in B.C. or California,” said Merritt.“So, we should say, build it in California. We’ll sell you the backup. B.C. makes the greatest money doing that.”Tags: Gordon Campbell,[url=http://www.moncler-sale.org]moncler on sale[/url], John Doyle, John Horgan, renewable energy,[url=http://www.moncler-sale.org]moncler outlet[/url], Simon Fraser University, U.S. Government,[url=http://www.moncler-sale.org]moncler sale[/url], natural gas
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