Ontario backs $7B renewable energy deal

Ontario has signed a deal with a South Korean consortium that plans to invest $7 billion in wind and solar energy projects in the province.

The agreement, which includes a promise to buy electricity produced by the projects, was signed Thursday by Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty and representatives of the South Korean group headed by Samsung.

"With this step, Ontario is becoming the place to be for green energy manufacturing in North America," said McGuinty.   

Under terms of the deal, Samsung will build an as-yet-undetermined number of wind and solar "clusters" around the province, with the aim of replacing energy now produced by coal-fired power plants.

"The clusters ... will eventually include wind turbines that will generate up to 2,000 megawatts, as well as solar power facilities that will generate up to 500 megawatts," the province said in a release. 

The first solar-wind project will be built in the Chatham-Kent and Haldimand County areas of southern Ontario.

But critics have railed against the deal, claiming it gives Samsung an unfair advantage over local wind and solar producers.

Job creation expected

The provincial government says it hopes the agreement will create about 16,000 jobs over a six-year period — a big part of the province's goal to create 50,000 jobs in the green energy sector.

Energy watchdog Tom Adams doubts that will happen, calling it a "crazy fantasy" that's not based on reality.

Adams said Samsung is getting what he calls "extra juicy rates" for the power it produces, and it's also getting guaranteed space on Ontario's crowded electricity transmission lines.

The South Korean consortium will be paid 13.5 cents per kilowatt hour for wind power and 44.3 cents for solar power — but will also be eligible for additional payments if it brings manufacturing to Ontario.

The projects are forecast to displace an estimated 40 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions. The province says that would equal removing every car from Ontario roads for one year. 

The opposition parties have called for an investigation by the provincial auditor general into whether taxpayers are getting a good deal.