Editor,
It has been noted by Mr. Johnson in a letter last week that TCE pays for trips associated with the project. However, it is my experience that council invoices TCE and TCE then settles these expenses. However, the funds used by TCE originate from the $285 million allocated by the provincial government. As a result, these costs are ultimately borne by taxpayers, not TCE. Provincial and likely Federal governments (hence tax/ratepayers) will then cover the projected $7.3 billion (potentially rising to $10 billion) for construction costs associated with pumped storage.
The current discourse around pumped storage, as presented by Mr. Johnson as well as our Municipal Council, tends to focus on supporting this option without thoroughly investigating alternatives. While pumped storage is a proven technology, other modern solutions, such as Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), offer significant advantages. These community-based, smaller energy storage systems are highly efficient, utilize the latest technologies, and come at a considerably lower cost. Additionally, they do not require substantial upfront investment from taxpayers.
Despite ongoing inquiries to council, there remains an unwavering focus on pumped storage—a technology that was suitable in the 1960s but not the best option for Ontario’s requirements today. The reluctance to consider newer, more efficient alternatives raises questions about the motivations behind the council’s support for pumped storage.
A recent, extensive customer survey conducted by Ontario Hydro One presented several choices to ratepayers, allowing them to vote on spending levels and see the resulting cost implications. Notably, when addressing future energy storage needs to manage blackouts and system failures, the survey emphasized expanding community-based Battery Energy Storage Systems, individual household battery solutions, and advanced switching systems for hydro outages. Pumped storage was not mentioned, underscoring a strong commitment to smaller, faster-to-deploy, and more affordable battery technologies.
Advantages of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS)
- Can be built anywhere
- Constructed in less than a year
- High and rapidly improving efficiencies
- Lower costs, decreasing annually
- Instant switching between storage and supply modes
- No massive upfront expenses: investments are incremental
- Systems are easily replaced or updated
- Far fewer construction challenges compared to pumped storage
- Significantly reduced environmental and water risks
- Compliments provincial bill 5 and federal bill C-5, with minimal regulatory hurdles
It is imperative for constituents to seek clear answers from council before allowing the pumped storage project to proceed further. A transparent evaluation of all available energy storage options is needed.
Pat Maloney, Meaford
