Canada's Ontario Province Faces Power Shortages

LCG, March 8, 2001—The Canadian province of Ontario could face electric power shortages if government regulators fail to authorize more private power plants soon, the Toronto Star reported this morning.

Rob McLeese, a spokesman for independent power producers, told the paper that some power plant developers who have been interested in building facilities in the province are "wavering" about investing in Ontario.

"They have plenty of other opportunities around the world, and will cross Ontario off their list if they don't get decisions soon," said McLeese, president of the Independent Power Producers Society of Ontario.

Ontario had planned to open its electricity market to competition last November, complete with a power exchange. But that plan was tabled for six months and then shelved indefinitely. Now, with no date in view where they can sell power onto the provincial grid, the power producers are becoming restive.

"The investors who have the money and the know-how to do this are looking at a global picture," McLeese warned. "They're not looking just at Ontario."

And that could add up to power shortages for the province according to McLeese, because "we don't have any new generation, and our generation is all running down."

http://www.energyonline.com/news/articles/c08-4can.asp

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), March 08, 2001