Ontario's electricity system operator - the Independent Electricity System Operator - has secured power supply from 10 battery storage facilities and three natural gas and biogas facilities, which it expects to meet the province's needs until the end of the decade.
The move will support the province's growing population and economy, according to energy minister Todd Smith.
The latest round of procurement has secured a total of 2,195 megawatts (MW) of capacity, enough to power the peak demand of 2.2 million homes.
Alongside 1,784 MW of clean energy storage from ten projects, the latest round has also secured 411 MW of natural gas and clean on-farm biogas generation.
Together, this acts as an insurance policy, maintaining reliability on the hottest and coldest days of the year.
This is consistent with the expert advice of the system planners at IESO whose Resource Eligibility Interim Report said: “Without a limited amount of new natural gas in the near term the IESO would be reliant on emergency actions such as conservation appeals and rotating blackouts to stabilise the grid.”
“The continued success of adding new technologies and resources to the grid will ensure the electricity system is ready to support continued growth all across Ontario,” said Lesley Gallinger, president and CEO, the IESO.
“The results of this procurement are also credit to the diligent collaboration between municipalities, Indigenous communities, proponents, and the IESO to ensure mutually beneficial projects go forward to secure our energy future.”
Ontario enhances power supply with biogas and battery storage facilities
