How Bill 86 could impact Alberta’s electricity grid

The Alberta government introduced Bill 86 in November 2021, which talks about integrating energy storage into Alberta’s interconnected electric system.

The previous legislation and regulatory framework restricted the use of energy storage technologies because of the following reasons:

• Lack of technical know-how on how costumers could self-supply and also send the excess to the grid.
• The absence of specific rates for energy storage resources in the AESO and distribution utilities’ tariffs.
• Lack of clarity or process concerning when and how energy storage resources may be considered as non-wires alternatives.
• Lack of clarity on how energy storage assets would be treated concerning a utility’s rate base, whether the utility owns the asset or obtains the services under contract with a third-party-owned asset.
• Lack of clarity on how energy storage assets would be treated concerning a utility’s rate base, whether the utility owns the asset or obtains the services under contract with a third-party-owned asset.

This bill intends to update the existing legislation with evolving energy technologies to enable greater integration of technical innovations to Alberta’s electricity system, providing long-term benefits for both consumers and the electricity industry.

This new bill will require participating companies to meet public health and safety standards and pay tariffs set by the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) to keep them from driving up electricity costs for consumers. The new system will also help Alberta prepare for the rise of electric vehicle charging, rooftop solar power and bi-directional charging between EVs and the grid.

As Alberta becomes the hub of clean technology innovation and implementation, passing this bill under the Electricity Statutes Amendment Act will:

• allow the integration of energy storage into Alberta’s interconnected electricity system in both the competitive electricity market and the transmission and distribution system.
• allow unlimited self-supply with export, technology that allows electricity to be generated on-site with excess power sent to the grid while ensuring that transmission system costs are balanced among all system participants.
• build on the Alberta Utilities Commission Distribution System Inquiry on modernizing Alberta’s electric distribution system to ensure the cost-effective integration of distributed energy resources in the system.
• add a requirement for distribution owners to prepare long-term plans as per future regulations, which will describe the outcomes and timing of the plans.

When fully functional and implemented, and if passed, this will also allow consumers to become a generator and earn through the sale of electricity to the grid.

Would this new piece of legislation require technological changes?

Bill 86 allows competitive procurement of energy storage resources as non-wire solutions, which refers to investments or operating practices that replace the need for building or expanding distribution or transmission systems.

This would open up participation in the province’s power grid, allowing companies to self-supply unlimited amounts of power and sell excess amounts to the grid for consumer use. Once passed, this bill will also make the amendments of upgrading the distribution system to allow bi-directional transfer of electricity and monitoring the same.

Bill 86 would encourage forms of energy storage like battery storage systems which could help deal with the ‘intermittency’ of renewable energy, decrease carbon emissions, improve the reliability of the power grid and encourage microgeneration or distributed generation that will help in offsetting distribution costs to come down for many remotely locations businesses and consumers.

The new technologies that are not covered in existing legislation, like electric vehicle charging and residential solar power generation, smart grids can also get their way into the system.

Selling electricity back to the grid: How does it work?

One of the major benefits of this arrangement is it will help customers to offset their usage and pay less on their utility bills since they’re producing their own energy. This can be done while maintaining a secure connection to the grid for those times when they need to purchase electricity.

The bill will allow the safe interconnection of customer-owned generating resources to utility-owned networks. Typically, a bi-directional meter is installed to measure the additional electricity a customer requires from the electricity grid and any excess generation that may be supplied back to the grid. This helps in proper monitoring of electricity flow and billing to the customer.

The deregulated energy market in Alberta allows you to shop and choose the energy product that suits your requirements. Visit  www.energyrates.ca, a free website in Canada, for an unbiased cost comparison tool that can help you find the best energy rates in your area. Residential, small business, small commercial, large commercial and industrial electricity and natural gas consumers can all use EnergyRates.ca. It’s easy – all you need to do is fill in the form above to get started.

References:

• https://www.alberta.ca/modernizing-albertas-electricity-system.aspx
• https://docs.assembly.ab.ca/LADDAR_files/docs/bills/bill/legislature_30/session_2/20200225_bill-086.pdf
• https://www.mondaq.com/canada/utilities/1137876/bill-86-integration-of-energy-storage-and-unlimited-self-supply-of-electricity-in-alberta
• https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/bill-would-allow-companies-to-self-supply-unlimited-power-sell-excess-to-alberta-power-grid-1.6252651
• https://www.stalberttoday.ca/local-news/new-legislation-could-see-changes-to-albertas-power-grid-4769312

Rising natural gas prices: Why are natural gas rates so high in Alberta?

Over the past few months, Albertans have been receiving extremely high natural gas bills. If we examine the historical natural gas prices between 2021 and 2022, we can see that the price has skyrocketed to as much as approximately $5.3/GJ in November 2021 (see the bottom of this post for tables comparing historical regulated natural gas rates for 2020-2022). Overall, the average natural gas rates have increased.

One major factor is extended cold snaps – constant freezing temperatures are a sure way to increase our consumption of natural gas. However, prolonged cold weather isn’t the only reason for increased natural gas prices. If you have questions such as ‘why are natural gas prices rising so fast?’ or ‘what’s going on with natural gas?’, we’ve got you covered.

Read on to learn more about what causes high natural gas rates in Alberta; the list below is not in a specific order.   

1. Higher Oil and Gas Demand

An increase in demand for Canadian natural gas exports has been one such factor behind the increases in natural gas. As the economic activity across the globe picks up, the need for natural gas also increases fast. Overall, the main driver of gas has been the European gas crisis. In particular, the war in Ukraine has played an additional role in increasing oil and natural gas demand. According to a Global News article, Russia is a critical supplier of natural gas in Europe and oil in global markets. Hence, an increased price of oil and natural gas.

As Russia reduces the volume of gas heading into Europe, the United States is exporting large volumes of LNG to Europe and consequently, Canada is exporting more gas down south to the US.

2. Extreme Winter Weather

Due to the deep freeze in late December and early January, heating was used more frequently and extensively in addition to increased electricity demand. During cold snaps, the average home uses 40% more natural gas and 8% more electricity for every 10°C drops below zero.

Alberta hit an all-time electricity usage record of 11,939 MW on January 3rd, 2022 due to a cold snap that lasted for about a month between December 2021-January 2022. The province also broke its summer record for electricity demand (11,414 MW on June 28, 2021) due to a heatwave in Western Canada.

Additionally, a colder and longer-than-expected winter in Eastern Canada and in the United States also resulted in above-average demand for natural gas, further increasing Alberta’s exports of natural gas.

While improved storage levels of natural gas storage can help with natural gas futures, they weren’t enough to put a ceiling on recent rises in natural gas pricing, according to a CBC news article.

3. Utility Payment Deferral

As a result of the pandemic, many Albertans couldn’t afford to pay their utility bills. As such, the province of Alberta put the Alberta Utility Bill Deferral into place between March 18 and June 18, 2020. Any remaining payments would then be added as a temporary rate rider to all customer utility bills. This charge appeared on residential electricity bills from November 1, 2021, and was set to last until March 1, 2022.

For natural gas, the rate rider was set at $0.78 per month, which was based on the average residential energy use of approximately 21 GJ.

4. Carbon Levy

A carbon levy is intended to put a price on carbon pollution – in Alberta, the Carbon Tax has been increasing over time. Every April, the tax adds $1.049/GJ to natural gas usage. While increased energy charges comprised 50 to 60% of the annual increase in default rate tariff (DRT) bills in each service area, the April 2021 increase in the carbon levy on natural gas also contributed to DRT bill increases, comprising around 20% of the increase, according to the Market Surveillance Administrator’s Quarterly Report for Q4 2021.

Below, you can see the increase in Alberta’s Carbon Tax over the years:

Year	Cost/GJ
January 1, 2020	$ 1.0499523/GJ
April 1, 2020	$1.5762711/GJ
April 1, 2021	$2.1025899/GJ
April 2, 2022	$2.6289087/GJ
2023	$3.42/GJ (estimate)

Albertans use significantly more natural gas in winter, so the effects of these carbon tax increases are usually felt some months later, during the colder seasons. This means Albertans will probably be able to clearly notice the April 2022 increase in winter 2023. Natural gas usage is much lower in summer, so people usually don’t feel the effects of the carbon levy right away.

In 2030, the federal government expects these costs to be at $8.94/GJ.

5. Wrong Bill Estimates

If for whatever reason wire service providers are unable to read your natural gas meters, they will estimate your consumption based on your historical usage in previous months. However, many consumers, especially those who consume large amounts of natural gas, have noted that their natural gas estimates are incorrect.

Here are a few steps consumers can take if they believe their natural gas estimates are off:

• Check your in-house numbers to what your meters are reading – make sure to take note of any new appliances as well as making sure your meters are accessible.
• Contact your utility provider about your concerns or file a complaint with Measurement Canada. However, note that if your meter is determined to be working, your utility provider may require you to pay a testing fee.
• Some providers such as EPCOR or Enmax Power allow for customers to provide meter readings online – you can see a list of providers that allow online reading here.

Will the natural gas price cap protect my natural gas bills from rising this winter?

In the 2022 Alberta provincial budget, it was announced that there would be natural gas consumer price protection for consumers using less than 2500 GJ annually that will come into play if gas companies charge rates above $6.50/GJ between October 2022 and March 2023. The natural gas consumer price consumption comes in the form of a rebate called The Energy Affordability Program.

However, it’s difficult to forecast if this price protection will activate over the course of the next year – based on 2021, natural gas market prices peaked at $4.87/GJ, while the highest regulated rate price (RRO) was $5.328/GJ.

A week later, the provincial government also announced an electricity rebate.

Natural Gas Averages in Alberta: Tables

Date (Month-Year)	Regulated Rate
January 2022	$3.645/GJ
February 2022	$5.05/GJ
March 2022	$4.939/GJ
April 2022	$4.594/GJ
May 2022	$7.039/GJ
June 2022	$8.699/GJ
July 2022	$9.094/GJ
August 2022	$6.679/GJ
September 2022	$7.212/GJ
October 2022	$5.113/GJ
November 2022	$5.507/GJ

Date (Month-Year)	Regulated Rate
January 2021	$2.623/GJ
February 2021	$2.93/GJ
March 2021	$4.088/GJ
April 2021	$2.78/GJ
May 2021	$3.24/GJ
June 2021	$3.291/GJ
July 2021	$3.965/GJ
August 2021	$3.891/GJ
September 2021	$3.38/GJ
October 2021	$4.025/GJ
November 2021	$5.354/GJ
December 2021	$4.792/GJ

Date (Month-Year)	Regulated Rate
January 2020	$2.267/GJ
February 2020	$2.222/GJ
March 2020	$1.573/GJ
April 2020	$2.286/GJ
May 2020	$2.272/GJ
June 2020	$3.152/GJ
July 2020	$1.241/GJ
August 2020	$1.755/GJ
September 2020	$2.589/GJ
October 2020	$2.256/GJ
November 2020	$3.141/GJ
December 2020	$2.765/GJ

Now that you’ve learned about the increasing natural gas rates in Alberta, you’re probably wondering how you can cut your utility costs. One of the easiest ways is to compare the providers in your area and their rates.

Our team at EnergyRates.ca can help both businesses (small, large and industrial) and residential consumers save on natural gas rates by comparing different plans and helping them find the utility provider with the lowest rates in their area.

To get started, just fill in the form at the top of this page with the required information.

For an explanation of why Alberta electricity bills are getting higher, check our electricity-focused guide.

A Closer Look at Alberta’s $300 Electricity Rebate and Fuel Tax Removal

Alberta’s electricity prices hit record heights in January, meanwhile across the country gas prices have hit unparalleled highs. Following the 2022 Provincial Budget, where the Alberta government offered a price protection mechanism for natural gas, the Province has announced additional help as Albertans struggle with their energy and gas bills.

The government plans to provide rebates for electricity bills for the first three months of 2022, as well as put the provincial taxes on gas and diesel on hold.

🚨#Alberta has announced a new plan to help lower electricity bills🚨

The plan includes a $150 rebate starting on April 1. If you didn't already know, 2022 has seen some of the highest electricity prices for Albertans in a decade.https://t.co/9XXIBFYZ5R#BreakingNews

— EnergyRates_CA (@EnergyRates_CA) March 7, 2022

Electricity rebates: Who gets some money back?

With Alberta’s electricity prices hitting unparalleled highs in January, the government is offering rebates to help Albertan families and businesses pay their bills.

The government will offer a $300 retroactive rebate on electricity bills over the past winter. The rebate, applied directly to the electricity bill, will provide partial reimbursement for electricity bills from January to March to anyone who consumed less than 250 megawatt-hours of electricity within the past calendar year. It is expected that over one million homes, farms, and small businesses will receive this rebate.

Eligible consumers will receive a $50 monthly rebate for each of the months mentioned above, and for three more additional months as mentioned in the update below.

UPDATE: On July 6th, 2022, the provincial government announced the electricity rebate program will be expanded and will go through the rest of 2022. Eligible Albertans will receive a monthly $50 bill credit for six consecutive months, for a total of $300, instead of the initially planned $150 amount.

The rebate will be listed on each bill as a line item titled “GOA Utility Commodity Rebate,” and $50 rebates will follow in August, September, October, November, and December for a total of $300. The exact timing will vary depending on the billing cycle of each utility provider, but most energy consumers should see the electricity bill relief starting in July and stretching until the end of December.

The government is working with over 45 of the province’s energy retailers to coordinate this program.

On June 22, 2022, the Associate Minister of Natural Gas and Electricity, Dale Nally, announced consumers will begin seeing rebates on their power bills as of July 1st. Eligible households and businesses can expect to see an automatic $50 rebate on their bills. It is being applied directly to eligible utility bills, meaning no application or other action is needed to start receiving the rebate in July.

As published in the government’s official news release, the $50 rebates will apply to the entire bill, not just the energy portion. The program will cover both consumers on the variable regulated rate option as well as those with competitive retailers. This means that if you switch energy retailers and start a competitive contract, you’d still be eligible, as long as you’re under the consumption threshold mentioned above.

Consumers who believe they meet the eligibility criteria but have not received the rebates by the end of July should contact the Utilities Consumer Advocate.

Back in January 2022, electricity peaked its highest in nearly a decade at 16₵/kWh in Edmonton and Calgary.

This doesn't include fees built in to your bills either.#YEG #YYC #EnergySTAT pic.twitter.com/aDo40ePj0K

— EnergyRates_CA (@EnergyRates_CA) March 10, 2022

Removal of Fuel taxes

Starting April 1st, the government will temporarily stop collecting the provincial fuel tax.

Currently, gasoline and diesel are taxed at 13 cents per litre, while marked gasoline and marked diesel are taxed at 4 cents per litre. GST collected on the provincial fuel tax will also be paused, which works out to an additional 0.65 cents per litre savings.

The removal of the provincial fuel tax is not the only change slated for gas prices, as the federal carbon tax is rising to over 11 cents per litre from just under nine cents. Alberta’s premier Jason Kenney commented “while the federal government is set to increase the carbon tax April 1, Alberta’s government is taking the opposite approach and stepping up to offer relief.” While Canadians receive rebates from the federal carbon tax, there is valid concern regarding a further increase in fuel prices.

This is a developing story. As new details are announced, we will update this article to keep you up to date.

The following article is a developing story. We have covered as much as we can at the time of publishing, but we may update this article as needed.  

How the 2022 Provincial Budget May Affect Natural Gas and Electricity Bills

On February 24^th, 2022, the Alberta provincial budget for 2022 was announced by Minister of Finance Travis Toews. While the budget proposed features many energy-adjacent strategies including further investment in Alberta’s Oil and Gas sector as well as diversification into new energy sectors including Hydrogen energy, many Albertans may be unsure how the budget affects them personally.  

The new budget comes in a time of uncertainty, where inflation rates have soared across many markets. Energy costs, in particular, have skyrocketed, elevating concerns over increased utility bills, with both electricity and natural gas prices increasing steadily during the course of 2021. With investment in oil & gas and other energy sectors taking such a key point of the UCP’s fiscal policy going forward, you might be unsure how the new budget will impact your energy bill.  

If you are in Alberta and need help figuring out the energy market or what energy plans work best for you, EnergyRates.ca is here for you.  

Natural Gas Price Protection and your Natural Gas Bill 

In their budget speech, Toews introduced natural gas consumer price protection “to alleviate the fear of spiralling utility costs, and to allow Albertans to benefit from an owned resource”. The rebate, available to consumers using less than 2,500 GJ annually, will kick in if regulated natural gas companies charge rates above $6.50/GJ between October 2022 and March 2023. The rebate is called The Energy Affordability Program.  

At the time, Alberta’s Natural Gas prices and trends suggested this number was higher than expected rates. We wrote: “barring significant increases above the expected price of natural gas in 2022/2023, it seems unlikely that Albertans will see significant protection from increased energy prices as a direct result of this price protection mechanism.” When the program was announced, energy experts were skeptical of natural gas prices hitting this level. However, since this article’s publication, regulated rates for natural gas have reached heights not seen since 2008, reaching rates as high as $9/GJ.

While the Energy Affordability Program will not take effect until October, current projections suggest that this number is easily reachable since the demand for natural gas typically goes up in Fall and Winter months.

One thing to note is that the conflict in Eastern Europe may play a major factor in the prices of natural gas. The European gas crisis has seen Russia’s natural gas exports to Europe decrease, with the United States exporting more natural gas to Europe and consequently Canada exporting more natural gas to the US. An increase in demand for Canadian natural gas exports has been one such factor behind the increases in natural gas.

Other factors, such as increases in the Carbon Levy in April, may also mean higher than normal Natural Gas Bills in 2022.

If you’re looking for ways to save on your natural gas bill, we got some strong advice for you here. 

What’s Up with the Balancing Pool and Electricity Prices?  

Despite electricity prices doubling throughout 2021, and 2022 seeing an all-time Alberta high for electricity (above 16 cents/kWh), one major thing that was not covered in the 2022 budget was helping-out Albertans with their soaring costs of electricity.  

A combination of factors has led to the drastic increase in electricity prices throughout 2021. One of note is the expiry of Power Purchasing Agreements (PPAs) held within the Balancing Pool.

When the electricity market in Alberta first de-regulated in the late nineties, the government entered into PPAs with generators, managed by the Balancing Pool, guaranteeing a set price for a certain volume of electricity to be produced. With the expiry of the Power Purchasing Agreements occurring on Dec 31st, 2020, energy prices have been less stable and smaller market drivers like extreme weather and decreased supply to the grid have had a more amplified impact on prices ever since, leading to the rates we see today.

Another factor that has played a significant role in the increase of electricity prices includes the decommissioning of coal-fired power plants.

During Alberta’s throne speech, Premier Jason Kenney stated that “the balancing pool no longer serves any useful purpose”. While the Balancing Pool provided price stability for Albertans in the past, without managing PPAs, the impact of the Balancing Pool on consumer energy prices is negligible.  

However, the Balancing Pool is “required to extinguish its net liability by 2030” and is projected to provide a significant amount of revenue for the 22/23 fiscal year (112 million per year) until 2024/25 to generate net income in order to do so (2022-25 Fiscal Plan, pg. 114). Due to the closed book nature of the Balancing Pool, it is unknown where this revenue will be generated from, outside of fees collected by energy providers. While in the time being, it seems like the Balancing Pool is here to stay until 2025, it is unlikely The Balancing Pool will help keep electricity prices down.  

Since the budget was announced, Jason Kenney has stated that electricity prices are too high and suggested potentially using the $250-million contingency fund to offset utility costs. However, as of right now, nothing has been established to protect from the sticker shock of current electric bills.  

With new electricity generation set to come online in late 2022 or early 2023, there may be more energy supply before the end of the current budget year, but otherwise, it is uncertain if we will see a reprieve from high electricity costs soon.

Going forward 

Rising oil prices have given the Alberta government an opportune moment to balance its budget for 2022. While oil and gas production has been a cornerstone of the Alberta economy, diversification of both the Albertan economy and how Albertans power their homes are both commitments this government is making.  

Between pipeline development, further development of green carbon and carbon capture technologies, the decommissioning of coal, and a $40 million dollar investment into a “Clean Hydrogen Centre of Excellence,” the Albertan government is building an economy that both utilizes natural resources and diversifies the local economy and energy sources. However, as Alberta becomes a better place for energy companies to do business, there are still justified concerns about further Albertan investments coming at expense of consumer energy bills. 

At a basic level, most of us have an idea of what renewable energy is and what isn’t. It can be energy in the form of solar energy or energy generated from wind – on the other hand, it’s the opposite of using finite resources like coal to generate energy. Additionally, you’ll see several articles claiming that we need to embrace renewable energy for the sake of sustainability or sustainable living. Perhaps you’ve heard of Canada’s goal of net-zero emissions by 2050, which involves transitioning to more renewable energy sources.

But beyond that, you might wonder ‘what else is there to know about renewable energy?’

In this post, we’ll go over several different topics related to green and renewable energy such as ‘what role does renewable energy play in Canada?’ and ‘how is green energy related to climate change?’ as well as many others. By the end of this article, you should have all the information you need regarding renewable energy in Canada and even on a global scale.

What is renewable energy?

To start, here’s a definition of renewable energy from NRCAN: ‘Renewable energy is energy derived from natural processes that are replenished at a rate that is equal to or faster than the rate at which they are consumed.’

How does renewable energy work?

Renewable energy works as energy being produced that has fewer to no environmental impacts in comparison to energy generation via sources like fossil fuels.

What are the types of renewable energy?

We’ve listed all the different types of renewable energy below as well as any pertinent information relating to each kind:

Hydroelectricity

Hydroelectric power is produced through moving water – more specifically, it converts kinetic energy from moving water to mechanical energy and then electrical energy.

According to NRCAN, moving water accounts for 59.3 percent of Canada’s electricity generation. Globally, Canada is the second-largest producer of hydroelectric power.

In Canada, the majority of hydropower is generated through run-of-river or reservoir generating stations according to Waterpower Canada.

Run of river systems works through guiding running river water down a channel or penstock (long pipes that bring water from reservoirs to turbines inside power stations). Then, the water is brought to an electricity generating building, where the water drives a turbine, which in turn runs a generator and produces electricity. Afterwards, the water is directed downstream of the river it came from.

Reservoir generation systems work through collecting and storing water behind a hydroelectric dam and allowing water to flow as needed to produce electricity. Just like with run of river systems, the flow of water drives a turbine which in turn runs a generator and produces electricity.

Finally, we’ll go over some pros and cons of hydroelectric energy in comparison to other forms of electricity generation:

Pros:

• Hydroelectric energy generation produces 70 times less greenhouse gas emissions than coal powered generating systems and 35 times less greenhouse gas emissions than natural gas powered generating systems according to Hydro Quebec.
• In Canada, water is easily accessible and abundant
• In general, it’s reliable and available throughout all seasons unlike wind or solar generated power which can be affected by the weather and time of year.
• Hydroelectric facilities have low operating costs.
• Hydroelectric power is less subject to market fluctuations since water is essentially an infinite resource.
• Hydroelectric plants can store water for later usage as well as irrigation purposes.

Cons:

• The creation of hydroelectric powerplants, dams and reservoirs can harm the surrounding waters – they can lead to increased temperature and reduced oxygen levels meaning aquatic organisms may no longer be able to thrive.
• Deforestation can occur to make space for hydroelectric plants, meaning methane is released into the atmosphere.
• Hydroelectric power plants have a high upfront capital cost.
• Living settlements that are downstream from a dam risk flooding.
• Areas near dams are often filled with water, meaning any organic matter in the area decomposes and releases carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere.

Bioenergy

Also known as biomass energy, bioenergy refers to usable energy derived from biomass, which is biological material that contains stored sunlight in the form of chemical energy. Some common examples include wood, manure, alcohol fuels (such as ethanol) and landfill biogas.

In Canada, biomass energy is the third-largest renewable source of electricity, accounting for 1.4% of Canadian electricity generation according to NRCAN. Additionally, it’s the second most important source of renewable energy in Canada. Overall, Canada produced 2% of the world’s biofuel in 2013.

Below are the ways that biomass energy is generated as outlined by Energy.GOV:

• Burning: Combustion is the main way that biomass is converted into energy – biomass materials are burned in a boiler which produces high pressure steam that rotates turbine blades which drives a generator.
• Anaerobic Digestion/Bacterial Decomposition: This method involves anaerobic bacteria decomposing organic waste material such as dung into methane and other byproducts to produce renewable natural gas which can then be purified and converted into electricity.
• Conversion to Gas or Liquid Fuel: Conversion to fuel can be done via gasification or pyrolysis. In gasification, solid biomass material is exposed to high temperatures in low oxygen environments to form synthesis gas which can be burned in a boiler to produce electricity. It can also be used to replace natural gas in a combined-cycle gas turbine. In pyrolysis, biomass is heated at a lower temperature range than in gasification, and without the presence of any oxygen. This results in bio-oil that can be substituted for fuel oil or diesel in furnaces, turbines and engines for electricity production.

Lastly, we’ll look at the pros and cons of using biomass power:

Pros:

• Biomass can use materials that would have otherwise gone to waste such as trees killed by pests or fires or ruined crops according to NRCAN.
• According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, biomass is carbon neutral in that when the plants used in biomass energy production are still growing, the amount of carbon dioxide used up is approximately equivalent to the amount of emissions released when biomass is burned.
• Biomass materials such as wood and manure are wildly available.
• Biomass technology is cheaper than the equipment and capital required for fossil fuel production.
• Biomass energy supports agricultural and forest product industries.

Cons:

• While biomass energy is technically carbon neutral, there are still emissions released during production, which are harmful to the environment.
• Biomass energy isn’t as efficient as fossil fuels – some forms of bioenergy are supplemented with fossil fuels.
• Biomass energy can be produced from a variety of sources – while that can be seen as an advantage, it also means that biomass energy facilities may be less efficient as a result of having to convert various different materials into energy rather than specialization of just one material.
• Biomass energy may be subject to seasonality compared to fossil fuels or other renewable energy sources.

Wind power

Also known as wind energy, wind power refers to when the kinetic energy of wind is converted into electricity. Typically, wind turbines are what convert the wind’s kinetic energy into electric energy. Overall, wind power generates 3.5% of electricity in Canada according to NRCAN. Additionally, wind is one of the fastest sources of electricity in Canada.

Below, we’ll go over the pros and cons of wind energy compared to other sources of green energy:

Pros:

• Wind energy is one of the cleanest forms of energy – greenhouse gas emissions only occur with manufacturing and transportation of turbines to their location unlike other forms of renewable energy where varying amounts of emissions are released during the energy production process.
• Wind turbines can be built on pre-existing farms or rural settlements.
• While there are costs associated with turbine manufacturing and set up, wind turbines have a relatively low operating cost.
• Wind power is space efficient in that you can set up several turbines and equipment in a smaller area compared to other renewable energy sources.

Cons:

• Wind generated electricity is more weather and season dependent than other forms of renewable energy.
• Wind turbines can harm wildlife such as birds who may get caught in the blades.
• Wind turbines contribute to both visual and noise pollution. In other words, they disturb natural landscapes and continuously make noise which can lead to health impacts such as reduced sleep and poorer heart health according to the WHO.
• Wind turbines have a large upfront cost to set up.

Solar energy

Also known as solar power, this refers to radiant light and heat from the Sun that’s converted into electricity. Compared to renewable energy sources in Canada, solar power makes up a relatively small proportion of generated electricity, sitting at 0.5% of total electricity generated according to the Canada Energy Regulator.

As outlined by ENERGY.Gov, there are two main types of solar technology that convert energy from the sun into useful energy – photovoltaics (PV) and concentrating solar-thermal power.

Photovoltaics are what are used in solar panels – when sunlight shines onto these panels, photovoltaic cells in the panel absorb this energy. This energy then creates electrical charges which move in response to an internal electric field within the photovoltaic cell which consequently causes electricity to flow.

As for concentrating solar-thermal power systems, these use mirrors to reflect and concentrate sunlight onto receivers that collect and convert solar energy to heat that can be used to produce electricity or stored for later use.

Moving on, we’ll go over the pros and cons of solar power compared to other green energy sources:

Pros:

• Having solar power panels on your home can help you save money on your electricity bill. Additionally, if you happen to have a surplus of energy generated, there’s the possibility of selling it back to the grid.
• Solar panels can increase property value.
• Solar panels are low maintenance – generally, they only require cleaning 2 – 4 times per year. Additionally, compared to other forms of renewable energy, there are essentially little to no maintenance costs.
• The only emissions associated with solar panels are those that occur when manufacturing and transporting them.

Cons:

• Solar panels are difficult to recycle once they reach the end of their lifespan. Additionally, according to an article from WIRED, they are liable to leach toxic chemicals such as lead into the ground.
• Solar panels are quite expensive, costing anywhere from $10,000 upwards.

Tidal energy

This can also be referred to as wave or ocean energy. This form of renewable energy uses the kinetic energy created from ocean tides to produce electricity. Overall, according to the Canada Energy Regulator, Canada stands as the 4^th in the world in installed tidal power capacity. As outlined by a National Geographic article, there are three main ways to harness tidal energy:

• Tidal streams.
• Barrages.
• Tidal lagoons.

Tidal streams are fast-flowing bodies of water that are created by tides – turbines (similar to the ones used for wind power) are placed here and electricity is generated from tidal energy generators. One key difference is that tidal energy is more powerful and stable than wind energy since water is denser, and tides are more predictable.

Moving on, barrages are large dams – water spills over or through turbines within the dam since the dam is low. They work similar to how river dams work – barrage gates open when the tide rises and at high tide, they close, creating a pool. Afterwards, the collected water is released through the barrage’s turbines, generating electricity at a manageable rate.

Finally, tidal lagoons refer to a body of ocean water that is partially enclosed by a barrier. The way they function is similar to a barrage – however, tidal lagoons can be built along natural coastlines and can also generate continuous power.

Next, we’ll go over the pros and cons of using tidal power:

Pros:

• Tides are easily predictable compared to other sources of renewable energy.
• Other than producing the equipment necessary for harness tidal energy, there are no emissions associated with tidal power.
• Depending on the type of system, tidal energy equipment can last much longer than other renewable energy equipment. One example is the La Rance barrage in France, which has been running since 1966.
• Tidal power stations can help protect coastlines that are prone to flooding.

Cons:

• Depending on the type of tidal energy system, tidal energy can have significant environmental impacts. For example, according to National Geographic, barrage systems can harm both animals and plants from frequent water level changes and changes in salinity.
• High salinity leads to corrosion, meaning constant upkeep and maintenance is required for tidal energy systems.
• Tidal power systems can disturb migration pathways for fish and animals.

Geothermal Energy

Geothermal energy refers to the energy that can be captured from the heat that is stored below the Earth’s surface or the absorbed heat in the atmosphere and oceans. Currently, there isn’t a lot of geothermal energy being converted into electricity in Canada. However, several other countries such as the USA and Indonesia have some amount of installed geothermal power capacity.

As outlined by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, there are three types of geothermal power plants:

• Dry steam.
• Flash steam.
• Binary cycle.

Dry steam power plants draw from underground sources of steam (such as The Geysers in California) – the steam is then piped directly to a dry steam power plant where it turns a turbine that generates electricity.

In flash steam power plants, geothermal reservoirs of water where the temperatures are greater than 182 degrees Celsius are used. This water flows up through wells in the ground under its own pressure – as it moves upward, the pressure decreases and some of the heated water boils into steam. This steam is used to power turbines – any remaining water is reintroduced back into the reservoir.

Binary cycle power plants make use of water that ranges between 107-182 degrees Celsius in temperature. The heat from this water is used to boil a working fluid (an organic compound with a low boiling pound such as isobutene) – the working fluid is then vaporized and used to turn a turbine. The water is then reintroduced into the ground for re-heating.

Finally, we’ll go over some of the pros and cons of geothermal energy:

Pros:

• Geothermal energy output is generally consistent and less subject to changing conditions than other sources of renewable energy such as wind power.
• Much of the equipment for harnessing geothermal energy is underground, meaning there’s little visual pollution associated with it.
• Geothermal power plants are release far fewer emissions than fossil fuel plants – according to the EIA, geothermal power plants emit 97% less acid rain-causing sulfur compounds and about 99% less carbon dioxide than fossil fuel power plants of similar size.
• Geothermal energy can be used for both small scale applications large – for example, a geothermal heat pump could be used to heat residential or commercial buildings.

Cons:

• Geothermal power plants are limited to certain locations – e.g., where underground reservoirs of heated water can be found.
• Setting up geothermal plants requires drilling deep into the Earth – this can cause underground instability which may lead to earthquakes.

What are the advantages of renewable energy?

As you can gather from our explanations of various types of renewable energy above, there are several benefits associated with renewable energy. Below, we’ll summarize the benefits of using renewable energy overall:

• Renewable energy (regardless of the type) reduces dependence on fossil fuel produced energy. Any reduction in fossil fuels means less emissions released to the environment and atmosphere, which will consequently slow climate change and reduce harm to ourselves, and the environment.
• Renewable energy creates jobs – according to Clean Energy Canada, there will be 639,200 jobs in Canada’s clean energy sector by 2030. This is up from an estimate of 430,500 in 2020.
• The world’s supply of fossil fuels isn’t infinite – investing in and using renewable energy now eliminates the problem of how we will power our homes and technology once there are no more fossil fuels.
• According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, many renewable energy technologies are deployed in a distributed and modular way, meaning that they’re less prone to large scale failure (which can result from severe weather events or other emergencies).
• Renewable energy can help in implementing off-grid solutions for rural areas and for populations who have limited to no access to electricity.

What are the disadvantages of renewable energy?

• Although renewable energy does create many jobs, it does also mean that those working in the fossil fuel industry may struggle finding other jobs as fossil fuels are less and less relied upon.
• The equipment and other means required by several renewable energy sources require a huge upfront capital investment compared to using fossil fuels.
• Once renewable energy equipment breaks down, much of it will sit in landfills since for the most part, equipment isn’t completely salvageable and/or biodegradable.
• Some sources of renewable energy are dependent on the season/weather patterns, such as wind energy and solar energy.
• Many renewable energy sources have geographic limitations – for example, landlocked areas cannot use tidal energy.

What is non-renewable energy?

As the name implies, non-renewable energy comes from sources that will not replenish within a reasonable timeframe (think thousands to millions of years). For all intents and purposes, once non-renewable energy sources are used up, they are gone.

Examples of non-renewable energy include coal, natural gas, petroleum, nuclear energy, and hydrocarbon gas liquids (such as propane or butane).

What is the best type of renewable energy?

This is a question where there isn’t a one size fits all solution. If for example, you wanted to know the most efficient source of renewable energy based on fuel prices, production, and environmental damages, the answer would be wind power according to Born to Engineer.

According to their calculations to the above conditions, wind power is 1,164% the most efficient, with geothermal at 514%, hydro at 317% and solar at 207%.

Obviously, however, if you live in an area with little wind, setting up wind turbines won’t generate anywhere near the amount of electricity needed to sustain your area.

Overall, when you’re trying to find the best type of renewable energy for your area, you should take the following things into consideration:

• Geographic area – what natural resources are available?

• Capital – how much capital is available for buying equipment and setting it up? Depending on your region, there may be grants available to offset some of the cost of setting up a renewable energy system.

• How much space is available to set up a renewable energy system?

• Consider the cons of the renewable energy types you’re interested in – for example, wind power can contribute to noise pollution and visual pollution, while tidal power can affect wildlife.

Where is renewable energy used the most?

In 2019, around 11% of global primary energy came from renewable sources.

To help illustrate that renewable energy contributes significantly to electricity generation and consumption, we’ve included a table below of the top 10 countries with the highest proportion of renewable energy sources in their total consumption below:

Rank	Country	% of Renewable Energy Used
1	Iceland	79.08%
2	Norway	66.18%
3	Brazil	45.02%
4	Sweden	42.24%
5	New Zealand	35.40%
6	Austria	33.70%
7	Switzerland	30.64%
8	Ecuador	30.39%
9	Denmark	30.16%
10	Canada	27.64%

Source: Our World in Data

When will renewable energy replace fossil fuels?

According to a report by Carbon Tracker, fossil fuels could be pushed out of the electricity sector by the mid-2030s considering the current 15-20% growth rates of wind power and solar power. By 2050, fossil fuels could be pushed out of the total energy supply altogether.

So how exactly did they come to this conclusion? In their report, Carbon Tracker found that with current technology and available locations, wind and solar energy could theoretically produce 6,700 petawatt hours of electricity per year, which is more than 100 times global energy demand.

While it’s difficult to specify a date where renewables will replace fossil fuels in Canada, Canada is currently going through an energy transition between now and 2040. According to NRCAN, by 2030, the aim is to have 90% of electricity be produced from non-emitting sources – by 2050, the goal will be to have 100% of electricity produced from non-emitting sources (of which a large proportion are renewable.)

Facts about renewable energy in Canada

Below we’ve compiled a few facts to help you learn more about renewable energy in Canada:

• According to NRCAN, renewable energy sources currently provide about 18.9 per cent of Canada’s total primary energy supply.
• The Energy Factbook for 2021-2022 published by NRCAN found that in 2019, 82% of electricity in Canada was generated from non-greenhouse gas emitting sources. Fifty nine percent of this electricity was generated by hydro power.
• In 2019, the overall total renewable energy production of Canada was 2047 petajoules, or 49.1 mega tonnes of oil equivalent.
• As of 2019, Canada ranked 7^th for share of energy supply from renewable sources.
• In 2019, 341,000 jobs associated with environmental and clean technology, representing 1.8% of jobs in the Canadian economy.
• Here are the provinces that contribute the most to each renewable energy source as follows: Manitoba produces 96.9% of hydro power, P.E.I. produces 98.5% of wind power, B.C. produces 7.1% of biomass and Ontario produces 2.5% of solar power.

Renewable vs clean vs green energy: What’s the difference?

Often, you’ll hear these terms being used interchangeably – but is there a difference? Let’s take a look at the definition for each term:

• Renewable energy refers to energy that comes from sources that can replenish themselves over short periods of time or come from sources that don’t run out. Renewable energy examples include tidal power and solar power.

• Clean energy refers to energy produced from sources that don’t produce any greenhouse gas emissions, but this term doesn’t necessarily mean that the source is renewable.

• Green energy refers to a subset of renewable energy that is represented by energy sources with the least amount of environmental impact such as hydro power and solar power.

To better illustrate these definitions, let’s consider biomass energy. Wood or unusable crops are often used in biomass – these sources can grow back within a reasonably short timeframe, so this source of biomass is renewable. However, since it does release emissions when burned, it can’t really be considered clean power even if it is technically carbon neutral.

Relative to other sources of renewable energy, biomass has a higher environmental impact which means it wouldn’t be considered green energy.

Overall, these terms are not equivalent.

What is “dirty” energy?

As defined by International Rivers, dirty energy refers to energy production that accelerates climate change and harms communities, especially in the global south. Dirty energy projects include extracting or burning fossil fuels to produce electricity, which releases emissions. The act of burning and extracting fossil fuels causes displacement of individuals, negative health impacts, polluted environments and worker exploitation.

Is nuclear renewable energy?

According to the Natural History Museum, nuclear energy is not renewable – it requires the use of radioactive fuel, which is not replenished within a short time frame. However, it is a source of low carbon electricity – nuclear energy production does not release greenhouse gases.

What is the Corporate Climate Action Plan (CCAP) in Canada?

As defined by the City of Windsor, a Corporate Climate Action Plan (CCAP) is “a corporate-wide plan to reduce energy and emissions from municipal operations and fleets. The CCAP focuses exclusively on energy and greenhouse gas emissions that are directly controlled by [a] City.”

Here are examples of corporate climate action plans from various cities: Windsor, Vancouver, and Kitchener.

Renewable energy solutions for businesses

Now that you’re more informed about renewable energy in Canada, you may be thinking about how you can incorporate eco-friendly energy into your business’ power needs.

For example, RECs or renewable energy certificates are one common energy solution used in corporate sustainability – a purchased REC represents one megawatt-hour electricity (1 MWh) produced by a renewable energy facility. Each REC offsets emissions from electricity produced by traditional sources that your company uses.

Other forms of carbon offsetting include investing in carbon capture programs or in co-generate plants, which use wasted heat to generate more electricity as an alternative to using more fossil fuels. Not sure what option to go with? Or maybe you’d like to know what other options are available – our team can help with that. By filling in the form here, our team can provide personalized advice and quotes on what clean energy solutions are available to your business.

Energy Management for the Future

By Leila Bakhtiari*

*This article was written by Leila Bakhtiari, and selected as the winning essay for the EnergyRates.Ca College Scholarship 2022. Bakhtiari is a Ph.D. Candidate in Chemical and Biochemical Engineering at the University of Western Ontario.

The modern world that is based on industrialism is extremely dependent on energy. Recent researches report a considerable increase in energy consumption during the current century, explaining that its consumption growth per capita is predicted to be about 56% from 2010 to 2040 (Sharifi et al. 2020). Fossil fuels still supply a much higher percentage of energy consumption as the main source of energy worldwide. Even though the conventional sources of energy, fossil fuels, have many advantages, their greenhouse emissions cause some serious environmental degradations such as global warming. Due to the environmental concerns caused by fossil fuels, renewable energies attract attention as safer and infinite sources of energy. In 2021, reports show that nearly 14% of world energy consumption is related to renewable energies. It is also projected that this amount will reach 30%-80% by 2100 (Kralova et al. 2010). 

However, at the first glance, shifting from conventional energies to renewable energies including hydropower, solar, and wind energy, seems good and simple, there are many factors and influential details that need to be checked. The main problem with using a renewable source of energy is its intermittency problem. In recent decades, a reliable achievement was obtained to solve this problem; using renewable energy sources paired with an energy storage system. Via adding storage to the energy system, the excess energy can be saved for the off-time of the renewable energy source. For years, many types of energy storage systems have been proposed and examined such as electrochemical batteries, fuel cells, supercapacitors, pumped hydro storages, and compressed air energy storage. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages as well. Therefore, more research still needs to be done in this area. In addition, it will take many years and so much professional work to reach a more efficient storage system. There is hope to gain an optimized and efficient energy system based on renewable energies in the near future. It would be a significant achievement to reach a sustainable and environmentally friendly energy system.

The other alternative for fossil fuels would be biofuels. Using biofuels as a main source of energy is one of the more controversial topics these days. Despite being introduced as an efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally friendly renewable source of energy before, some research, recently, illustrates the opposite results about biofuels. But a bright future is expected for biofuels with more investment in research.

In my point of view, today’s human has been captured in a vicious cycle of more consumption for more production. This vicious cycle in the form of creating more well-being and more economic prosperity leads to more energy consumption and more environmental damages including accumulation of waste in nature and global warming. Apart from the changes that need to be made to promote the culture and attitudes of societies, in the field of energy, most research should focus on reducing energy losses in all sections of an energy system.

References

Sharifi S, Nozad Heravi F, Shirmohammadi R, Ghasempour R, Petrakopoulou F, Romeo LM.( 2020) Comprehensive thermodynamic and operational optimization of a solar-assisted LiBr/water absorption refrigeration system. Energy Reports, 6: 2309–23.

Kralova I, Sjoblom ¨ J. (2010) Biofuels-renewable energy sources: A review. J Dispers Sci Technol, 31(3):409–25. https://doi.org/10.1080/01932690903119674.