Editor,
Ten years have passed since TCE engineers looked up at our Niagara escarpment, not expressing wonder and knowledge of the natural world, but rather how they could “develop” this precious resource in the municipality of Meaford. No care about the ramifications: TCE knows they can handle these in ways a small town like Meaford would have no idea how to handle. TCE know their stuff!
Or do they? Two years of secrecy, then to leak their idea to the then mayor Clumpus and finally a public announcement through a new ignorant-at-the-time new council and this ill-advised boondoggle was started. Our election in 2022 saw our current mayor standing up to this abortion: his campaign against such a foolish project won him the election. This did not last long as TCE’s plan worked perfectly on this new council and by 2023: in virtual silence and no public interaction council pulled turncoat and voted to conditionally support this project as “willing host”. There are conditions, but all of those do not address the important challenges this Pumped Storage project face: Cost, Efficiency and Available Alternatives for energy storage. These three things to the best of my knowledge must be addressed but are being ignored.
When signing the “Willing Host” here are the conditions that should have been met:
Cost: will be $2.3 billion in 2023, today is now estimated to be $9.3 billion. A cap of $5 billion was needed as a condition. Maybe $7 billion but a cap on the cost for sure.
Efficiency Targets: the round-trip efficiency is likely 70-75% at best. Every Cycle waste 400MW. Water does not flow uphill and pumping it uphill takes 1400MW from our grid to produce 1000MW of storage. This is not green energy.
Alternatives: can TCE’s project match Battery storage on cost, efficiencies and construction deadlines? In 2023 it was debatable but deserved attention. Today to ignore these technologies show a high level of Ignorance. We do not require IAAC in this case: the alternatives are simply better. People in power just need to recognize this before any more time and money is wasted.
Yet TCE continue using our tax dollars for geologic tasting, advertising, coffee chat “look-what-we- are- doing” waste of time meetings and who knows what else to use government’s $285 million gift from Ontario taxpayers and energy consumers. I have mentioned in past letters of a possibility that TCE would sell this project to another company that possess skills to construct this project. TCE finally confirmed a step towards that plan this week. Ten years after they first had the idea! Seven years of waste. No sale yet but TCE just hired someone else to run the show! They never had any thought of building this project, just profiting on it. TCE have zero experience building pumped storage facilities. Neither do any other Canadian based companies yet TCE claimed all along they could do it using local labour expertise (that does not exist), where possible, using local supplies from Canadian manufacturers (which do not exist) and provide employment opportunities worth millions to Ontario: this project if it ever gets built will employ 20 to 30 people. We need to demand the employment cost budget as well as who, what, where workers come from.
Now TCE have hired the Worley company (Australian) to direct another company EllisDon (Canadian) for construction execution and infrastructure design with support from another Canadian company AECOM. Worley is an Australian company with offices in Canada to gain business. No offence to Aussies but big offence by TCE. Does outright lying apply or maybe just non truths when TCE indicate preference to hiring of local talent “if possible”? No pumped storage has been built in the last 69 years in Ontario. For the last 6 years TCE are promoting themselves to build an Ontario pumped storage system despite Ontario and Canada not having any pumped storage production or workers. Ontarians need to stand up and be shown a budget for this project before it goes any further: remember Highway 407? Remember the price hikes? We need limits applied regarding costs and hiring practices before they get further out of control.
My experience makes me believe we are being “hoodwinked”, first by TCE, then by our municipal CAO, Council and the Provincial Government. This statement assumes both levels of government have knowledge of TCE’s recent hiring practices that, from the start needed to use another company to provide expertise. TCE makes a nice profit, Worley make a nice profit, construction companies EllisDon and AECOM make a nice profit: that works, but what is OUR cost in the end: $15 billion?
TCE’s Hire and Buy Local program to prioritize local and indigenous workers, services and suppliers is simply unachievable. They just hired away a ton of expertise and money to a “foreigner” because, since the start of this project idea they had no clue on how to build a pumped storage facility. Add to this that they never mention “Training Local” workers that building this project will demand. I know one person in Meaford that has the abilities to help with energy storage systems, yet he has never been contacted, even after challenging TCE, their engineer in charge, Mickelson at the time, Mr. Little and council to a town hall meeting to review energy storage systems in 2021. He has expertise but not one person returned his offers: total non-commitment to at least listen. This shows all parties are hiding something or maybe just afraid of the truth? Sorry readers: this is in my opinion, but you decide.
It is past time for residents to investigate all aspects of this project. Do not listen just to me: go online and read the TCE statement regarding their hiring of Worley: “Canadian Expertise…”. Read for yourselves this amazing statement admitting they have never possessed pumped storage knowledge! TEN years of misinformation.
We need to voice our concerns to Provincial Government. Demand answers as to why this boondoggle keeps progressing using our tax dollars for an energy storage system that no longer makes sense. We need corporations that support Meaford and Ontario not those that only want profits. This is inexcusable, again: in my opinion.
*Although thoroughly researched If my facts or statements are found to be in error please feel free to notify me directly.
Pat Maloney, Meaford
