Neudorf responds to Project of the Century report

By Lethbridge Herald on July 21, 2023.

Al Beeber
LETHBRIDGE HERALD

Lethbridge East MLA and Minister of Affordability and Utilities Nathan Neudorf has responded to a report issued by the Public Policy Forum on Wednesday.

The report says Canada needs to build more electricity generation in the next 25 years to support a net-zero economy by 2050.

“In its 2023 budget, the Government of Canada forecasted that demand for electricity will double between now and 2050, while supply capacity will have to grow by an astounding 2.2 to 3.4 times today’s volume. Imagine every dam, turbine, nuclear plant and solar panel across Canada – and then picture a couple more next to them. Two more James Bays in Quebec. Two more Point Lepreaus in New Brunswick. Two more Niagara Falls in Ontario. Two more Site Cs in British Columbia. Canada’s national landscape is currently dotted by more than 100 power plants of at least 250 MW, each big enough to supply a city of 180,000. Soon we will need 220-340 of them,” says the report.

“Another way to look at it: together, the gargantuan Churchill Falls, Robert-Bourassa and Bruce Nuclear generating stations account for 11 percent of Canadian electricity generation capacity. We would need at least another 18 of each,” adds the report.

The extensive report says Canada is in a better position than most countries when it comes to “reaching the destination of clean electricity” with 82.5 per cent of the grid in this country being emissions-free.

But it says three provinces and two territories operate electricity with higher proportions of greenhouse gas-emitting electricity than the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development average.

“There is much work to do on clean supply and, importantly, the investment and effort it will take to create that clean supply. Significantly, the task falls unevenly across the country,” says the report.

It adds “Alberta’s retreat from coal has been accomplished by switching to natural gas (also a fossil fuel but a significantly less carbon-intensive one) and renewables. It is seeking flexibility from Ottawa over the treatment of natural gas and the timing of a net-zero grid.”

Neudorf said “the message in the Public Policy Forum report is clear and reconfirms what we already know and have been saying – the federal government’s goal of a net-zero electricity grid by 2035 faces considerable regulatory, technical and supply chain challenges. This plan also risks imposing exponential costs on consumers in Alberta and Canada.

“We are at a critical point in history where the global energy market is changing and energy supply needs to be addressed. Demands for reliable, sustainable energy are higher than ever, and we need our system to evolve to meet these demands in a responsible way,” said Neudorf in a statement.

“According to this report, the cost to Canadians of a net-zero grid by 2035 is well over one trillion dollars. Alberta’s share of that will be much higher than our proportion of the Canadian population since we won’t be able to onboard stable base load renewables in such a short period of time,” said Neudorf.

“Additionally, the Conference Board of Canada has put the cost of the federal government’s expedited clean electricity transformation at $1.7 trillion, almost the size of the entire Canadian economy in 2023. To put this into perspective, the country would need to grow its annual electricity investments by 2.5 times and devote more than half of Canada’s current annual infrastructure investment to electricity alone every year over the next quarter-century. Accelerating toward net-zero by 2035 would also cause massive immediate increases to the power bills of individual consumers.”

Neudorf said that in his ministerial role he’s focused on ensuring Albertans can provide affordable and reliable electricity for future generations.

“The federal government’s plan for net-zero by 2035 would require billions of dollars of investment with the costs borne by ratepayers across Canada, but most especially in Alberta. This is one more example of the federal government increasing costs on Alberta families when they can least afford it.”

Neudorf said the UCP government believes that carbon neutrality by 2050 can be achieved and it would position this province among leaders globally “and provide the best opportunity to transition our grid in a manner that considers regulatory approvals, supply chain challenges and the human, financial and physical resources to take on a project of this magnitude.

“Our priority is to make well-considered, long-term decisions that adapt Alberta’s electricity system to meet our energy needs well into the future.”

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