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"It's a step in the right direction."
Yup, we taxpayers will be paying a premium of "$30
per kilowatt hour in addition to the standard price from the Ontario grid"
(which is 5 to 5.8 cents/kWh) to power the city hall.
I just don't understand what is happening
here! I don't even understand the arithmetic. I guess that's what happens when we have a source of socially
acceptable (green) power.
Jerry
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Green power to drive City hall
2007-07-26
Mississauga City Hall will be switching to green power in a
one-year experiment.
Starting this fall, a private contractor will supply the Civic
Centre with power from renewable fuel sources, such as wind, solar, biomass, and
small hydro-electric generation.
The City currently purchases all its electricity from the
standard Ontario grid that consists almost exclusively of nuclear, coal and oil,
hydraulic and natural gas fuel generation.
“We are committed to finding new ways to conserve energy and use
green power to improve the environment. We are hoping our purchase of green
energy will encourage others to look at using alternate sources,” said Rajan
Balchandani, energy manager for the municipality.
But it’s not going to come cheap.
“Buying green power for the Civic Centre is estimated to cost the
City $187,000 or 36 per cent more than existing costs for this facility,” said
Balchandani.
Shifting to green power at 300 City Centre Dr. would cut
greenhouse gas emissions by 4,400 tonnes — the equivalent of taking 975 cars off
the road for a year.
“It’s a step in the right direction. I’m pleased to see Wal-Mart
and other corporations are also purchasing green electricity,” said Mayor Hazel
McCallion.
The three companies that currently offer green electricity in
Ontario are Bullfrog Power, Direct Energy, and Oakville Hydro. Balchandani said
the City will be issuing a Request for Proposals to these companies within two
or three weeks.
Purchasing green power requires no change to the City’s current
electricity supply contracts or any special equipment or wiring. The green power
supplier simply injects into the electricity grid clean renewable electricity
from EcoLogo-certified sources. The facilities will continue to draw power from
the grid as they always have and pay electricity bills directly to the
utility.
The cost premium to buy green power is $30 per kilowatt hour in
addition to the standard price from the Ontario grid. Based on consumption
rates, it would cost $86,000 extra for the Central Library and $124,000 for the
Living Arts Centre if the initiative is extended to these facilities.
Last year, the City consumed 110,000 megawatt hours of
electricity at a cost of $9.9 million.
The alternative purchase pilot is just one of numerous
environmental initiatives the City has undertaken, which include running air
conditioning at higher temperatures in City buildings in summer heat waves and
stopping maintenance activities with gas-powered equipment during smog alerts.
Also in the works is a $300,000 project to install photovoltaic
panels on the roof of the Hershey Centre to convert sunlight into electricity.
This electricity will be sold to the Ontario grid, generating revenue of
approximately $12,500 per year. The project is also expected to reduce carbon
dioxide emissions by 25,800 kilograms per year for approximately 25
years.
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