Atikokan Gen. Station to close in 2007

News Release
Provincial Government

TORONTO, June 15 /CNW/ - The McGuinty government’s aggressive plan to replace coal-fired generation with cleaner sources of energy and conservation will clean up our air, improve the health of our citizens, and contribute to the sustainability of our environment while ensuring a reliable supply of electricity, Energy Minister Dwight Duncan said today.
“We are leading the way as the first jurisdiction in North America to put the environment and health of our citizens first by saying ‘no’ to coal,”
Duncan said. “And as we have said all along, maintaining reliability is the first principle of our plan. It’s a prudent and responsible path that will ensure cleaner air for the province.”
“Our government’s plan will reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Canada by up to 30 megatonnes a year - which is equivalent to taking almost seven million cars off the road or removing every car and small truck in Ontario,” said Environment Minister Leona Dombrowsky. “The closure of Ontario’s coal- fired generating stations is expected to provide up to half of the province’s greenhouse-gas-reduction contributions under the Kyoto Protocol.”
The first of the five coal-fired plants, Lakeview Generating Station (GS), was officially closed in April. The plan released today will see three out of the four remaining coal-fired generating stations close by the end of 2007, with the remaining station, Nanticoke GS, to close in early 2009.
Under the coal replacement plan:
- Lakeview GS, representing 1,140 megawatts of generating capacity, was closed in April 2005, following completion of projects to strengthen the transmission system in the Toronto area.
- Thunder Bay GS, representing 310 megawatts, will be replaced by gas-fired generation in 2007.
- Atikokan GS, representing 215 megawatts, will close by the end of 2007, following the replacement of Thunder Bay units and necessary transmission upgrades, with no direct replacement necessary.
- Lambton GS, representing 1,975 megawatts, will be replaced by the end of 2007 by two combined-cycle gas-fired generating stations in the Sarnia area announced as a result of the government’s request for proposals for clean energy capacity.
- Nanticoke GS, representing 3,938 megawatts, will have units closed through 2008 with the last unit to close in early 2009. In addition to new generation capacity, transmission upgrades in southwestern Ontario are necessary for the closure of Nanticoke.
To support the replacement of coal-fired generation in Ontario, the McGuinty government has put the wheels in motion to produce well-over 7,500 megawatts of cleaner, more diversified power. Between 2004 and 2007, Ontario will secure more new generating capacity than any other jurisdiction in all of North America.
The government is also currently reviewing a tentative deal with Bruce Power for the refurbishment of two laid-up nuclear reactors, which together represent more than 1,500 megawatts of additional capacity. If concluded, this agreement would raise the total of McGuinty government initiatives to 9,145 megawatts.
A cost benefit analysis released in April uncovered massive health and environmental costs from coal-fired generation. The study found emissions from all coal-fired stations were responsible for up to 668 premature deaths, 928 hospital admissions and 1,100 emergency room visits in Ontario per year. It also found that with an annual cost of $4.4 billion, coal-fired generation is significantly more expensive than other sources of electricity.
The plan is receiving praise from environment and healthcare experts and regulatory agencies in charge of the reliability of Ontario’s electricity system.
“Premier McGuinty’s coal replacement plan makes good sense to the Ontario Clean Air Alliance,” said Jack Gibbons, Chair of the Ontario Clean Air Alliance. “While there is a delay for the complete phase-out of coal relative to the original forecast, we believe it is worth taking the extra time necessary to do the job right and ensure an orderly and sustained shutdown.
The benefits for all Ontarians will be enormous and long-lasting.”
“The McGuinty government’s plan means a significant reduction in harmful airborne emissions, which will mean fewer cases of childhood asthma and better health for Ontarians,” said Dr. Anna Day, a respirologist at Sunnybrook and Women’s College Health Sciences Centre in Toronto.
“The phase out of coal represents one of the most significant undertakings in the history of Ontario’s electricity sector,” said Dave Goulding, President and CEO of the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO). “The implementation of the government’s plan to stop burning coal in 2009 recognizes the need to maintain reliability as coal-fired generation is phased out in favour of cleaner generating sources. The IESO is committed to working with the provincial government and others to ensure that reliability is not compromised during this transition period.”
In order to ensure system reliability and to support the coal replacement strategy, Minister Duncan has directed the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) to launch new procurement processes for additional power in the downtown Toronto core and west GTA, new demand-side management and demand response initiatives, and industrial co-generation and district energy projects across the province. The OPA will release further details on these processes, which will be launched by the fall of 2005.
The government has also directed the OPA to begin discussions with the owners of seven underutilized electricity generators, sometimes referred to as “early movers”, to increase the operation of the facilities at a reasonable cost to Ontario consumers.
In creating new capacity, the government has placed particular emphasis on expanding renewable generation in the province, and is well on its way to meeting its target of adding five per cent, or 1,350 megawatts of new renewable generating capacity by 2007. By the end of 2007, it is expected
Ontario will see a 75-fold increase in its wind capacity alone.
The Ministry of Energy is working together with Ontario Power Generation and a number of ministries, including Northern Development and Mines, Natural Resources, Economic Development and Trade, and Municipal Affairs and Housing, to assess the impact of closures on the workers and their communities. The government is asking Ontario Power Generation to engage its trade unions in discussions designed to minimize the impact of plant closures on employees.
“We are replacing coal in Ontario for good - for the good of our air, for the good of our health, and for the good of Ontario families,” Duncan said.