We Ontarians are experiencing another hydro rate increase beginning this May. The residential hydro cost has almost DOUBLED IN JUST 6 YEARS. In 2010, one kWh cost 9.3, 8 and 4.4 cents for high, medium and low cost time periods. Now it is 18, 13.2 and 8.7 cents. For 1000 kWh we are now paying $225 , in comparison with BC at $84 and Quebec at $67.
This totally unacceptable increase in hydro rates is proportional to the growth of by now proven as costly and useless wind energy projects during the same period of time. (Ontario green energy act was implemented in 2009.) Yet you still build and promote the wind power. You justify your decision by repeating the misleading propaganda of the wind turbines industry. You are ignoring the rational warnings from engineers and othercritical thinkers – warnings which are based on reliable measured data and grade four arithmetic.
Ontario is also enjoying the highest industrial hydro rates in North America, driving several industries out of the province, such as Caterpillar, John Deer, United Steel, Kellogg, Kraft, Heinz, and General Motors.
Ms. Wynne, recognize and admit that your continuation with the naive and costly utopia about wind energy replacing fossil and nuclear fuels is hurting the Ontario economy more and more every year.
In more detail, here are 11 reasons why you should stop this senseless waste right away.
1 WIND TURBINES MOSTLY RUN IDLE. Initially,wind power looks like a good idea, especially to the misinformed Ontarians. Most of them have never heard about the capacity factor of wind turbines. A typical 16% capacity factor means that wind turbines perform only at 16% average of the installed capacity.
Even 25 % would not change the big picture. As a comparison, wind turbines work only about one day in the seven days work week. In other words, useful wind amounts to only about 450 hours per year, and the year has 8760 hours. The rest of the total wind power are small intermittent segments.
2 100% BACK UP POWER IS ALWAYS REQUIRED. On a cold and quiet winter day or on a hot and humid summer day all the power has to be provided by reliable nuclear, hydro and gas turbines. At almost all other times the power produced by the wind turbines is very small, unpredictable and chaotic. Ontario data for 2015: Nuclear provided 60%, hydro 24 %, gas 10%, wind 6% bio fuel 1%, and solar less than 1% of the total consumed electrical energy. (source: IESO)
So, for the investment of some 14 billion, we got only 6% of the Ontario energy demand a very small, unreliable part which is causing only problems on all fronts – from big financial waste, to stability of the system, to degradation of the precious farm land, and more.
3 IESO IS SHOWING THE TRUTH ABOUT THE WIND ENERGY ON THE WEB EVERY HOUR.
IESO is the Ontario government appointed " independent electricity system operator" . Just click IESO and then HOME. It shows every hour the amount of energy produced by nuclear, hydro, gas, wind, bio fuel and solar. From the installed wind capacity of 3500 MW there is mostly only a small fraction performing, perhaps 400MW and often less. Only on rare windy days the production is somewhat higher. But even on windy days the wind changes constantly in intensity, with gusts lasting sometimes only minutes. Example: May 23, 2016, 4 pm. total demand: 13,999MW. Nuclear was providing 8,661 MW, hydro 4,405 MW, gas 1,001 MW, wind 241 MW, solar 157 MW, bio fuel 0 MW. May 24, noon: demand 15,794 MW wind 208 MW. Check today's report, several times! And the next day.
4 YOU ARE SELLING THE EXCESS WIND ENERGY AT A BIG LOSS
There is no need in Ontario for the costly and only intermittent wind energy. Every day we export more than import, see the IESO site again hour by hour. To produce one kWh from wind turbines costs around 13 cents (reliable nuclear, 7 cents). You are exporting the kWh sometimes at 1 or 1.5 cents, often less, sometimes you even pay just to get rid of the unnecessary surplus. Quebec then exports this cheap energy at approx 5 cents to the US. So, ironically, Ontario taxpayers are subsidizing cheaper energy in the USA, making it even easier for the industries to leave Ontario!
5 TWO BILLION LOSS PER YEAR ON WIND TURBINES EQUALS HYDRO INCREASE OF $500 PER YEAR PER HOUSEHOLD.
"Wind Ontario" website estimates that at least 2 billion were lost on wind power in 2015. This translates, by using just grade four arithmetic, to about extra $40 per household per month. Sounds familiar?? This totally incompetent waste of the taxpayer money has to stop now! Or we are very likely facing $50 increase per
month in the next year!
6 WIND POWER DESTABILIZES THE GRID. CO2 EMISSIONS GO UP, NOT DOWN. PEO WARNING
Those meagre 6 % of total power produced by the wind turbines in 2015 were useless also in another way. The reliable power sources have to adjust to this little and silly politically correct wind power resulting in the grid instability and potential blackouts. PEO (association of professional engineers of Ontario), has
issued a stern warning: "Constant changes to the grid are prone to error and Ontario grid was not built to
handle such. Be prepared for frequent and long blackouts or worse, complete failure of our energy grid". And: "CO2 emissions will increase because on/of running gas plants create more emissions than running continuously." It is time, Ms. Wynne, to listen to some sound engineering advice.
7.COMPARE OUR ONTARIO SITUATION WITH THE GERMAN WIND POWER FIASCO.
Go to " Germany 2014 report card is in. Its 25.000 wind turbines averaged 14.8 %of rated capacity."
This article by the German Vernunft ( Reason ) society explains in precise numbers and graphs ( mostly translated into English) what I have just stated in this letter. German wind turbines operated with only 14,8 % capacity factor, an embarrassingly low value for the most advanced wind power country in the world.
Germany has the same problems as Ontario but is experiencing more of grid disturbances and blackouts because of their even larger investment into the wind power.
As in Ontario, the real wind power contribution is very small, and mostly useless. (about 5,800 MW average of 68,000MW the average German demand) But when wind blows strongly across the North Sea and most of Germany, Germans try to dump it at little cost or at a loss. Due to grid overload,and the resulting instability, blackouts have been experienced, not only in Germany, but also also in Poland and the Czech Republic who are now trying to block the German imports altogether.
Industries, most of them needing uninterrupted power supply, are threatening to leave Germany and are forced to build their own generators. Because Germany is phasing out nuclear , it is now building at least 10 coal fired plants, which will be using the dirty lignite coal without CO2 removal.. The wind power spectacularly failed to replace nuclear and coal. German carbon emissions are on the rise.
Holland, the motherland of wind power, is not doing any better either. After a lot of resentment by the public, only 4 percent of their power is provided by wind turbines.
Fortunately we are enjoying the reliable nuclear power in Ontario so the wind utopia will cause less financial and environmental harm than in Germany, but only if we stop it now.
8 PROBLEM FOR ONTARIO: MR. BOB CHIARELLI.
The energy minister is promising more wind power for Ontario. He is not willing to learn from the German experience and is not listening to serious warnings. More wind power would equal more costly electricity, more instability, more blackouts, more industry leaving Ontario. Mr. Chiarelli, a lawyer, should be replaced as soon as possible by an engineer or at least by a technically competent person. Before he causes more serious damage to the Ontario economy. ( I also do not expect you would select an engineer to the position of the attorney in your cabinet.)
9 THE MISLEADING WIND POWER PROPAGANDA
I have never been subjected in a democratic society to such untrue government propaganda. For example, if the wind blows in Germany full blast for one day, the pro wind propaganda hails the event as a big success, ignoring the fact that in the real life exactly the opposite is true, as explained above.
The other misleading statement, used regularly by the wind industry and your government in Ontario, is how many households a wind turbine can power. The honest answer is simple: NONE. Most of the power, some 94 percent and very likely more in your and mine house comes from the reliable sources such as nuclear. Connected only to a wind turbine, your food would spoil in a few days and none of your appliances and electronics would work. The statement that wind energy projects provide work in Ontario also does not impress me. It is a self defeating, useless work, profitable only for the wind industry, and paid for by the
taxpayer. Ms. Wynne, the people of Ontario deserve the truth. It is your duty to look into the massive evidence against the wind power and act.
10 SERIOUS ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE, NOW AND IN THE FUTURE
These giant turbines, often more than 100 metres (330 feet ) high are a huge eye sore, make life of many residents nearby miserable, kill thousands of birds and bats and degrade the precious farm land.
Because wind turbines last only 10 to 20 years, soon our beautiful Ontario landscape will be littered with rusting, broken down monsters. Your legacy, Ms. Wynne! Who will pay for the enormous cost of the removal?
11 A WARNING FROM THE AUDITOR GENERAL FOR ONTARIO
After the rushed and poorly planned green energy act by your government, the Ontario auditor also issued a serious warning: "The province wind and solar initiatives were decided and implemented in such haste that no comprehensive business case evaluation was done to objectively evaluate the impact of the billions
of dollars commitment."
Your predecessor and now yourself have indeed acted in an irresponsible way. Did the wind industry ever tell you that their turbines are of no practical use for most of the time? Do you now understand the meaning of the capacity factor? Repeat: it is time to put the welfare of Ontarians ahead of your ego and stop this waste now.
We all make mistakes, and the smart people learn from them. It is now clear to all critical and realistic thinkers that wind and solar will never replace or even moderately supplement nuclear and other reliable sources of the electrical energy in Ontario.
Maks Zupan, P. Eng.
