The business case for sustainable energy

I am a strong supporter of environmental protection, but I am also a strong supporter of energy issues with a businessman’s pragmatic attitude.

I am currently president of a renewable energy cooperative and have run a successful business for many years.

As a member of the business community, I can say without hesitation that the business case for renewable electricity – including solar and wind energy – has never been stronger.

For starters, renewables are extremely cost-competitive.

The global financial services company Lazard, estimates that onshore wind now costs about five cents (U.S.) and utility-scale solar about six cents per kilowatt-hour. In contrast, new nuclear energy is about 18 cents per kilowatt hour – three times more expensive than energy from the sun!

Renewable energy is embraced by some of the world’s most successful economies.

Nine European countries, including Germany, Denmark and Norway, recently agreed to massively increase the capacity of wind farms in the North Sea. The Guardian reported that “the nine countries aim to increase their combined offshore wind capacity in the North Sea to 120 GW by 2030 and 300 GW by 2050.”

This is a huge amount of wind energy. In comparison, the installed generating capacity of all wells in Ontario is approx 38 GW.

These leading economies are certainly concerned about the climate crisis, but they are also ramping up more renewable energy sources because it’s good for the bottom line.

It’s not just that wind and solar costs are falling dramatically; it is also that widespread adoption of renewable energy sources frees us from the vicissitudes of dependence on gas.

This is according to a recent report by the International Energy Agency, there are many questions about the reliability of gas: “Global gas supplies will remain tight in 2023 and the global balance is subject to an unusually wide range of uncertainties. Risks include adverse weather conditions, such as a dry summer or a colder-than-normal end of the year, lower availability of LNG and the possibility of a further decline in Russian pipeline gas deliveries to Europe. These factors could easily revive market tensions and price volatility.”

Importantly, the IEA recommends countries reduce their gas consumption: “There is a continuing need to reduce gas demand in a structural way through improved energy efficiency measures, accelerated deployment of renewables and heat pumps, as well as behavioral changes.”

Unfortunately, the Ontario government does not appear to have read this report. Ontario plans to massively expand its current gas-fired power plants and is about to build new ones. (Greenhouse gas emissions from existing gas plants alone will increase by more than 300 percent by 2030.)

This does not make sense. Why tie ourselves to a climate-destroying fuel that traps us in an endless cycle of price volatility dictated by factors beyond our control?

If Queen’s Park doesn’t accept common sense, we should look to Ottawa. The federal government will soon release its Clean Electricity Regulations (CER) with the goal of a net-zero grid by 2035.

These regulations have the potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but some experts are concerned that the regulations will contain a loophole that would allow Ontario to keep gas-fired plants running into the 2040s. That would be a disaster.

The business community must speak with one voice and urge the federal government to enact a CER that is watertight and removes all fossil fuels from the power grid within the next decade.

Such a policy would protect us from the costs, risks and volatility of international gas markets.

It would also allow us to purchase more water, wind and solar energy – much of which is made right here in Ontario – which would lower energy prices and make our province a more attractive place to do business.

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