First, I seriously question…

First, I seriously question the IESO's future demand forecast. As Ralph Torrie has reported several times, the electricity utility in Ontario has for many, many years predicted additional demand that never materialized. While I expect that there will be some additional demand, the opportunities presented by energy efficiency and demand management using "smart grid" and other non-wires technologies must be pursued. These will have a significant effect on demand and have the potential to save electricity customers a significant amount of money.

It is essential that Ontario keep pushing towards zero carbon. We must not procure any new natural gas generation and we should work to reduce the use of the existing gas powered generating assets. While nuclear is "low carbon", procuring additional nuclear generation is a mistake. Nuclear generation is significantly more expensive than renewable energy, even when compared to solar plus storage and other renewable technologies that are dispatchable to a reasonable extent. While the risks of nuclear accident are small, a significant accident would be catastrophic. And we have yet to solve the waste storage issue, despite recent announcements of a location for a deep geographic repository.

Renewable energy is the lowest cost generation technology. It is modular, so small amounts of generation can be added as required without having to commit billions of dollars to large generation projects. Matched with Ontario's large hydro-electric capacity, I believe that Ontario could move to a grid that is 100% renewable. This will not be easy, but I have confidence in Ontario's engineering community that they can manage a fully renewable grid if they put their mind to it. It will not be cheap, but it will be significantly less expensive that building large, inflexible gas and nuclear generators. In the long run, an 100% renewable grid will be economical as renewables are inherently deflationary - since there is no fuel cost, every kilowatt-hour generated is less expensive than the previous one. And in the end we will be able to enjoy clean air and an economical and reliable energy economy throughout Ontario. Thank you.