Transcript The Algoma Coalition - Ontario Energy Board

Presentation to the Ontario Energy Board
East – West Tie Line Proposals
OEB File No. EB-2011-0140
Who is the Algoma Coalition
 As name implies all members are from the Algoma
District with one from the Thunder Bay District
 For purposes of the East-West Tie Line and
recognizing
opportunities
members
of
the
Northeastern Superior Mayors Group joined the AC
being:
 The
Townships of Manitouwadge, White River,
Chapleau and Hornepayne (Township of Dubreuilville &
Municipality of Wawa were already members)
The Algoma Coalition - East-West Tie Line
History
 Coalition formed in the 2002 timeframe and in
reaction to the re-regulation of the electricity market
which led to crippling electrical rates (commodity &
distribution) in the region
 Made appearances at the OEB regarding rate
applications (GLP & Algoma Power)
 Led to RRP, community based meetings and other
consultations
 Led to greater awareness regarding electrical costs
Oral Hearing E-W Tie Line
 In May 2012 strongly opposed written hearing in
Toronto
 Relationship to the Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Most significant infrastructure project in N. Ontario in
decades ($0.5 billion)
 We are pleased that the Board has provided this
opportunity
Project Support
 We generally support the project
 Necessary and prudent for N. Ontario and the
Province
 Our approach is not technical but rather holistic as it
relates to the planning perspective
 In regards to the impact and opportunities that the
project could and should bring to our member
municipalities and others in N. Ontario
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Established pursuant to Places to Grow Act, 2005
 Must be considered in designating a transmitter and
proceeding with both phases of the decision making
process
 Section 1.2 of the Plan sets out its purpose being to
engage and empower residents businesses, institutions
and communities to work together to build a stronger
Northern Ontario and recognizes that to achieve these
long term goals strategic coordination partnerships
and collaboration are essential
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Generally support the project but our opinion is that
the project has miserably failed the Plan
 No municipal collaboration
 No municipal partnerships
 Absolutely no municipal engagement or consultation
 The
lack of collaboration and consultation with
municipalities and residents is the direct responsibility
of the Province of Ontario and the proponents
 We do give credit to the process for its extensive
collaboration and consultation with the First Nation and
Metis
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Fact
 Municipalities in Northern Ontario have considerable
resources to offer proponents (financial and otherwise)
 Significant interest in ensuring success, long term
viability and local access to this major infrastructure
project
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Section 1.4 – Guiding Principles
 Guiding principles 1, 4, 5 & 6 have been largely ignored
as they relate to this project due to a complete lack of
consultation and engagement at the municipal level
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Section
1.7 – A Collaborative Approach to
Implementation
 Encourages collaboration among levels of Government
and among non-governmental partners
 Regrettable that this process has not taken this section
seriously; if it had, opportunities for collaboration
would have been executed
 This omission should be rectified prior to continuation
of process and certainly prior to selection of a
transmitter
 This should be a weighted decision criteria
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Section 2 – Economy
 Preamble states the plan is to support growth & diversify
the region’s traditional resource based economy
 To comply the project must include opportunities for
local use of proposed infrastructure
 Traditional and emerging markets in bio & green
economy need ability to import and export power to be
successful
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Section 2.2 – An Economic Action Plan for
Northern Ontario
 “The
Province will collaborate with the Federal
government as well as business and industry,
municipalities,
Aboriginal
communities and
organizations”
 Unfortunately there has been no collaboration but such
collaboration should be encouraged and ingrained in
the result of these hearings
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Sections 2.2.2 and 2.2.3
discuss existing and emerging
economic development strategies
 The strategies are dependent on collaboration mentioned in
2.2 which have never occurred at the municipal level
 Section 2.2.5 states “Industry will be encouraged to
participate in the development and implementation of the
Province’s five-year economic plans”
 What is the Province’s plan?
 No regional economic plans published
 Therefore not known if they have ever been considered
 Yet the NESMG has been working on economic matters for 12
years and they were overlooked
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Section 2.3 – A Growing and Diversified Economy
 Section generally discusses the importance of a growing
and diversified economy for N. Ontario
 Facilitation herein will require ability of importing and
exporting of power on a local level
 Important to prevent disenfranchising of smaller
communities from such development thereby not
providing an unfair advantage to larger communities
 Access for traditional sectors (mining & forestry) but
also for opportunities in emerging sectors of renewable
energy and technologies
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Section 3 – People
 No information on how the people of the area can be
trained, educated and used for the project
 Should the necessary resources not be developed in the
area through partnership with educational institutions
in order to ensure a skilled and innovative population?
 AC notes that two of three proponents have facilities in
N. Ontario showing that such facilities are feasible
 Our feeling that proponent should be required to detail
a facility in N. Ontario and that this be a weighted
decision criteria
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Section 4 – Communities
 Discusses economic and service hubs
 Although not named, it is clear that Wawa is one such
hub
 Goes on to state “They are also points of convergence for
major infrastructure including transportation, energy,
information and communications technology and
community infrastructure”
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Section 4.2 – Long Range Planning
 Discusses
need for long-range planning and
collaboration among communities
 Proponents should be consulting with communities in
the subject area so they understand what planning is
going on in the subject area
 Will ensure vital access points enabling local business to
facilitate the growth plan and take advantage of
opportunities rather than a continuation of
marginalization that has retarded and frustrated growth
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Section 4.3 – Economic and Service Hubs
 Such
hubs were to be identified through
implementation of the plan
 Not done to date yet such hubs are known and should be
used
 Section 4.3.4 quotes “Economic and service hubs shall be
focal areas for investment in regional transportation,
energy information and communications technology and
community infrastructure”
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Section 5 – Infrastructure
 Section discusses energy generation and transmission
infrastructure in Northern Ontario as being key to the
growing economy and that such investments should be
coordinated with collaboration and discussion with
various level of government
 “This Plan provides a vehicle for aligning and
coordinating infrastructure investments to support its
economic development priorities and to meet the needs
of existing and future residents. This requires working
closely with partners including the federal government
and municipalities”
Growth Plan for Northern Ontario
 Section 8 – Implementation
 Implementation is to ensure that the population is
engaged and informed and that their views shall be
sought out and that methods such as regional meetings
shall be used for this purpose
 All too obvious that this was absent from this project
and should be required of proponents prior to
designating a transmitter
 Requires coordinated & collaborative decision making
which is absent from the proposals
 The results of this collaboration should be a weighted
Decision Criteria
Designation Criteria
 In light of the Growth Plan for Northern Ontario we respectfully
request
 That
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the OEB, in this designation process, consider the
socioeconomic benefit for communities on and served by this East
West Tie line corridor as a major decision criteria
The OEB consider and prefer proponents who will use local labour
and supplies both in construction and operation of the project –
compliance with Northern Growth Plan
The OEB consider and prefer proponents who will consider
financial partnerships with municipalities
Proponents should be required to have a consultation plan with
municipalities located throughout the routing area of the project
That resources for the long term maintenance of the asset be
located through the routing area of the project
Designation Criteria
 These requests cannot wait until the construction of
the project
 Needs to be done during the designation process
 Proponents need to be prepared to address these
matters to the best of their ability
Weighted Designation Criteria
 Weighting designation criteria has been mentioned
herein
 Weighting the criteria will benefit the process by
allowing applicants to focus on the matters most
important to the OEB
 Such criteria should be clear and weighted so there is a
clear understanding by all
 Again a socio-economic criteria should be specifically
considered and strongly weighted in the process
 Suggest reviewing the FIT 2.o weighting process as an
example
Consultation Process
 Many groups are being consulted but municipalities
have been left out of any consultation
 Such a process should allow affected communities to
have a say on routing and access near or through their
communities
 One example of the significance that consultation can
play can be noted in the Environmental Protection Act,
Regulation 359/09 Sections 16 and 18
 It is clear that the Provincial Legislature places a high
value on such consultation, why should this process be
any different
Transfer Capacity
 We support the assertion that reliability and transfer capacity be
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added as “must pass” criteria in the designation process
Transfer capacity could be the primary criteria as the
constrictions of the present line greatly limit business
development in N. Ontario
Given that the predicted life of the proposed line will be 70 years,
it is important that the transfer capacity matter be addressed
now.
The planning horizon of 25 years in the Northern Growth Plan
should be the focus of any consultations resulting from the
designation process
Given the number of decades that the asset is needed to operate,
reliability will need to be a major criteria
Tracking Performance
 Tracking performance by the designated transmitter
will be important
 The Board should require the filing of quarterly
reports measured against various performance criteria
 Allows Board to track progress
 Allows an opportunity to intervene if acceptable
progress is not being made by the designated
transmitter
Designating a Backup
 Instead of a back-up transmitter the Board could list
all proponents in order of preference
 The Board could then use the list to progressively
select an alternate should the initially designated
transmitter not be prepared to proceed
 The Board need not include all proponents on the list
and could remove those who do not meet minimum
thresholds
Summary
 General project support
 Failure of the process to recognize the Growth Plan for
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Northern Ontario
Designation criteria
Weighted designation criteria
Consultation process
Transfer capacity
Tracking performance
Designation of a back-up