Port Hope Mayor Olena Hankivsky says the community is eager to hear more about the province’s plans surrounding OPG lands and potential energy generation in Wesleyville.
Earlier this week, on Wednesday, the province announced Ontario wants to explore sites for energy generation in Port Hope, Haldimand County and St. Clair Township – and that the government has called on Ontario Power Generation (OPG) to start discussions with Indigenous, community and municipal leaders at these sites to delve into support for all types of new energy generation, including nuclear power.
The province said this is in response to a “soaring demand for electricity.”
On Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024, the Municipality of Port Hope and Hankivsky issued a brief statement in response.
“The Municipality of Port Hope acknowledges the recent announcement by the Province of Ontario regarding their direction to Ontario Power Generation related to a potential opportunity for electricity generation at their Wesleyville property,” reads the statement.
“This is an important announcement by the province, and we look forward to receiving more information regarding the proposed discussions with OPG and the community engagement with Port Hope,” said Hankivsky, in the statement.
The statement goes on to direct residents to watch and/or subscribe to the municipality’s website and social media channels for further updates.
In the province’s announcement, officials quoted Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO), saying demand for electricity is forecasted to jump by 75 per cent by 2050, which is the equivalent of adding four-and-a-half cities the size of Toronto to the grid.
Officials also noted that these particular sites are already zoned for electricity generation, have proximity to transmission, and are located within regions experiencing significant growth.
The province called community engagement a critical part of its approach to new energy generation, saying these early conservations with communities will include how they would be supported and potential benefits, including:
- Equity participation for Indigenous communities in generation projects;
- The creation of a new fund with up to $50 million for municipal host communities across the three sites to support community infrastructure investments and attraction of co-located industry;
- Additional municipal property taxes related to new generation stations and co-located companies; and
- Associated jobs and economic development for municipalities and Indigenous communities from new generation, co-located industries, and supply-chain spending.
In the provincial release, it states IESO has indicated that growing energy demand stems primarily from a rapid increase in Ontario’s population, new manufacturing facilities, advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) data centres, the electrification of industry and charging for electric vehicles.
In the same release, Ken Hartwick, OPG president and CEO, also spoke to the significance of engagement with communities.
“OPG places great importance on ensuring strong relationships and partnerships with our potential host communities, neighbours, and Indigenous Nations, on whose traditional territory we operate,” said Hartwick. “Our strong record of safely building and operating generating facilities, including nuclear, will continue into any new generation opportunities OPG may pursue.
“We look forward to meeting with municipalities and Nations to understand their perspectives and aspirations for their communities.”