Nova Scotia Power ordered to file yearly report on how it's greening the grid - Action News
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Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia Power ordered to file yearly report on how it's greening the grid

The provincial regulator has ordered Nova Scotia Power to report on its progress to decarbonize the grid every year leading up to a major deadline to retire its coal-fired plants and hit 80 per cent renewable energyby 2030.

Utility and review board says decarbonization plan is appropriate, but there are obstacles

Greenery in the foreground frames three smokestacks at a power generating station.
Nova Scotia Power will have to update the utility and review board each year on progress to hit legislated 2030 climate change targets. (Dylan Jones/CBC)

Nova Scotia Power has toreport on its progress to decarbonize the grid every year leading up to a major deadline at the end of the decade.

The Nova ScotiaUtility and Review Board (UARB) made the order this week. It comes after Nova Scotia Power delivered a progress report in Januaryat the regulator's request.

Thatreport detailedhow Nova Scotia Power will retire its coal-fired power plants and hit 80 per cent renewable energy about double where it is now by 2030.

The UARB said the plan laid out by Nova Scotia Power earlier this year seems to be appropriate, and projects appear to be on track.

"That said, the timeline is very tight, many uncertainties remain, and a concerted effort by N.S. Power, and collaboration by federal and provincial governments will be required to maintain the current momentum," the board explained in a written decision.

A wind plant in Nova Scotia. The role of wind power, which is one of the cheapest sources of energy, is set to dramatically expand in a net-zero emissions future.
The role of wind power is expected to dramatically expand in Nova Scotia as the province aims to double renewable energy use and get off coal by the end of the decade. (Andrew Vaughan/The Canadian Press)

Nova Scotia Poweris mandated by provincial law to achieve its renewable energy goals. It's facing a $10-million finefor failing to meet an earlier target.

Included in the 2030 plan are a handful of new wind and solar projects operated by third parties that Nova Scotia Power is counting on to bring 1,100 megawatts of clean energy online in the next few years.

The utility is also starting to build three major battery storage facilities, and it is planning to build a new transmission line connecting Nova Scotia to New Brunswick. The estimated cost of that intertie has risen over the past year to $811.5 million from $459.5 million.

A street is littered with downed utility poles and power lines.
Downed power lines and poles on Woodlawn Road in Dartmouth, N.S., after post-tropical storm Fiona battered the province in 2022. Nova Scotia Power has been ordered to come up with a better way of analyzing its efforts to improve resiliency and reliability. (Submitted by Joshawa Tyler LaVoie)

The yearly progress report ordered this week is to be included in Nova Scotia Power's annual capital expenditure plan. It's supposed to detail how projects in the original report are advancing and any challenges that come up.

Improving resiliency and reliability

The order was one of several pieces of homework assigned by the UARB to Nova Scotia Power this week. Among the other assignments: better reporting on efforts to make its grid more resilient and reliable.

Those efforts are regularly scrutinized by the board and other stakeholders who participate in board proceedings.

"Questions from the board and intervenors remain as to whether N.S. Power is investing enough in the right things to fundamentally improve the reliability and the ability of the system to withstand more severe weather events," the board wrote.

A handwritten sign on the door of a business reads,
A gas station in Sydney, N.S., closed due to a power outage after post-tropical storm Fiona, Sep. 24, 2022. (Michle Brideau/CBC/Radio-Canada)

A consumer advocate recommended bringing in a third party to review Nova Scotia Power's reliability investments and programs. But Nova Scotia Power said that would be "duplication of an effort and an unnecessary additional cost to customers." The board agreed with the utility.

However, the board said Nova Scotia Power needs to look into developing better metrics for analyzing whether it's effectively spending money on resiliency and reliability efforts. It has to report back on that work in 2025.