Ontario Won’t Extend Electricity Agreement With Quebec

According to Radio-Canada, the government of Ontario has no plans to extend the Ontario-Quebec Electricity Trade Agreement.

The seven-year agreement, set to end next year, seeks to reduce Ontario’s GHG emissions by purchasing 2.3 Terawatt-hours of power from Quebec annually.

This news comes as the Quebec utility, which is owned by the province, fights legally to implement its plan to export power to Massachusetts.

The Ontario agreement guarantees a seasonal energy exchange since Quebec has a summer power surplus and winter electricity demands. In 2026, Ontario aims to exercise its last option for 500 megawatts.

Todd Smith, Ontario’s energy minister, claims “a competitive procurement process” will save money. He stated that Quebec will “run out of electricity in the middle or at the end of the decade.”

Premier François Legault declared during the election campaign that Quebec needed to boost hydroelectricity production since demand will rise by 100 terawatt-hours in the coming decades – half of Hydro-Québec’s present yearly output.

The two provinces will continue to purchase and sell power through annual auctions.

Original source material for this article taken from here