CENTRE WELLINGTON ‒ While most councillors felt two proposals for battery energy storage facilities in Belwood and Fergus were "dropped in their laps," they still chose to oppose staff recommendations and offer their support.
This follows a new report where staff said battery energy storage systems (BESS) are better suited for employment rather than prime agricultural lands and council support would be premature as there has been "a very limited time" to determine the overall impact of these facilities.
According to staff, Alectra Energy Solutions' proposal to construct a lithium-ion battery energy storage system (BESS) and store up to 250 MW on 19 acres of prime ag at 8545 Wellington County Road 18 is "difficult to support," while the Aypa Power site, which would store up to 200 MW on 15 acres at 6235 Guelph Street in Fergus "may be feasible" as it's adjacent to the Fergus Urban Centre.
Storing electrical energy in batteries for later use, BESS act as a form of both supply and demand by storing low-cost power during off-peak periods and feeding it back into the grid when the demand for electricity is highest and can be "particularly useful" when integrating renewable resources like wind and solar because it can "help smooth out" energy output changes "caused by unpredictable weather."
But Coun. Bronwynne Wilton, who led those in support of the project during a council meeting Monday evening, argued municipal approval isn't the be-all to end all and both facilities will likely face competition down the line.
According to both facilities, it's "highly unlikely" that any project will advance without municipal support as it represents 40 per cent of the procurement evaluation process.
"Providing energy sources for the province is a priority and sometimes municipalities have to play their role in that," said Wilton. "In this particular case, we're not approving anything at this stage in the game, we're providing a letter of support to say we're interested in seeing how this unfolds."
However, both Coun. Jennifer Adams and Coun. Barb Evoy sided with staff, arguing on behalf of prime ag lands and questioning the feasibility of rehabilitating the land post-development.
"I feel like there are too many major issues that are left way too unclear for me to be comfortable with this application," said Evoy. "I want to support our farmers and our ag land."
When consulted, county planning staff said they've advised other municipalities to direct such uses away from prime ag and any current exemptions do not apply to private operators.
Staff were not able to fully analyze the potential future revenues of an established BESS operation in the township because the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation does not give predetermination of tax class or value.
The full report is available here.
Isabel Buckmaster is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
