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Wind power an expensive option
The Leader-Post
During recent public hearings on possible nuclear development
in Saskatchewan the anti-nukes' mantra was how renewable energy sources like
wind and solar could replace nuclear power on a cost basis. In July, the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) published its energy purchase prices for independent power producers and the numbers blow a big hole in the mantra of the anti- nukes! The OPA will pay wind producers 13-19 cents per KWH and pay nuclear producers 6-7 cents per KWH. Since the utility cost markup (difference between what it pays for electricity and what it sells electricity for) is about 50 per cent, wind electricity in Ontario would cost the consumer 24 cents per KWH, while nuclear energy would cost 10 cents per KWH. It's too bad SaskPower doesn't publish the price it pays for independently produced electricity so we could all have the facts and see how the true costs of wind are being hidden in the overall mix. Walter Keyes Regina © Copyright (c) The Regina
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