Ont. gives green energy price guarantee

Ontarioexpects tocoverthe total cost and provide "a reasonable rate of return"for investments in green energyprojectsthroughdecades-long contracts with fixedelectricity prices.

The governmentsaid it is the first program of its kind in North America.

Solar, wind, water, biomass, biogas and landfill gasproducers, including individual homeowners,will all be eligible to sell their power to the provincial gridunder the program,one of the four final components of the Ontario Green Energy Act announced by Premier Dalton McGuinty Thursday.

"The tariff will make it easier to get financing and access to the energy grid," McGuinty said at a new conference in Toronto Thursday. "These rules will give investors the confidence they need to help build tomorrow's green economy."

The other components include:

• A requirement thatwind turbines be located at least 550 metres fromresidential homes farther away than anywhere else in Canada, the United States and eight European countries.

• Arequirementthat at least 25 per cent of the goods and labour for Ontario wind projects and50 per cent for solar projects come from Ontario.

• The establishment ofan office to help developers, communities and municipalities get the required approvals for their green energy projects.

The act is already law, having gained royal assent in May, which means most of the new ruleswent into effectas soon as they wereannounced.

The government predicts that the entire Green Energy Act will generate 50,000 direct and indirect jobs in Ontario.

Solar array ban on farmland

Individuals, communities, businesses, schools andhospitalsthat want to sell renewable energy to the gridunder Ontario's new feed-in tariff program will be offered20-year contracts (40 forhydroprojects)and guaranteed prices of 10.3 cents per kilowatt-hour for landfill gas projects larger than 10 MW to 80.2 cents per kWh for residential solar rooftop projects 10 kW or smaller. Abonus will be paid for aboriginal and community projects to encourage participation.

However, the regulations willban all exceptvery small ground-mounted solar arrays (100 kilowatts or less) in the two highest-quality classes of farmland or in designated specialty crop areas.

"We think our best agricultural land should be preserved for the purpose of agriculture," Smitherman said.

Solar farms of up to 500 megawatts will be allowed on about2,400hectares of slightly lower quality class 3 lands as part of projects that have already seen significant investment, Smitherman added.

The Ontario Power Authority willstarttaking applications on Oct. 1, 2009, and expects to sign the first contracts in early December.

According to the Ontario Sustainable Energy Association,which represents and supports community-based renewable power projects, similar programshave beensuccessful in various European countries and have even been adopted inregions of China and India.

Kristopher Stevens, the association's executive director, said in a statement that the Ontario program provides "great incentives" for green energy projects, while streamlined regulations remove existing barriers.

Ontario content for wind, solar to rise

However, the groupwas disappointed inthe rules regarding Ontario content for wind turbines and solar panels.

"The 25 per cent is only expected to promote local construction jobs and transmission components, not the turbines themselves as hoped," it said in a news release.

The government said it plans to boost Ontario content requirements to 60 per cent for solar on Jan. 1, 2011, and 50 per cent for windon Jan. 1, 2012.

McGuinty also faced questions Thursday about whetherthenew ruleswould hurt federal government efforts to fightthe U.S. 'BuyAmerican' policy. That policy requirespublic works projects funded by the U.S. federal stimulus package to use only U.S.-made iron and steel. The premier responded that there was no comparison.

"They are permittingzero per centOntario content. In one case here in Ontario, we would permit up to 75 per cent U.S. content," he said. "We're not saying we're going to do everything, but we are going to lay claim to a significant portion of the work and the jobs that are going to be made available to us because of this legislation."