Antigonish
The following provides a high-level summary of some of the comments received during Electricity System Review public consultation meetings. They do not represent a consensus or a majority of opinions, but simply comments and dialogue captured by department staff.
Antigonish - September 21, 2014
Energy Sources
- Some participants thought we should be increasing renewables, some thought we also need to consider cost, and others felt that climate change should be the number one consideration for sourcing electricity.
- Environmental considerations should draw upon the experience of others – we don’t have to be leaders.
- If we are increasing the amount of renewables we should be creating local jobs. We should be maximizing our economic development and tax resources with our electricity infrastructure.
- The question was asked as to whether switching Port Hawkesbury Paper to natural gas would decrease the demand on NSPI?
- Some participants thought we should be exploring regional options (not just Nova Scotia sources), while others felt we have little control over the price of imports or their security.
- Tidal could provide great economic development opportunities.
- The cost of some sources of electricity do not include their environmental costs. All costs should be factored in.
Innovation
- Some participants felt that Nova Scotia is too small – there may be things we just can’t afford to do here. We should adopt the best practices of other jurisdictions and let others refine technologies and bring the price down. Others felt that we have excellent academic institutions and should be encouraging them (through research grants) to do cutting edge research and development here in Nova Scotia.
- Smart energy technology has value but is not as important as economic development and the environment.
- Some discussion on how to pay for innovation took place. It was suggestedthat tax revenues from electric power utilities should go to grants and scholarships for renewable research in Nova Scotia - similar to the way we did for the petroleum sector play fairway analysis,but for renewables development.**
- On how we could integrate more renewable, some participants commented that they had water meters installed and are now better off.
- Innovations to be considered include:
- smart meters (although some felt they have a "big brother" feel. In general, participants felt that we should start using smart metres as soon as possible.
- pilot projects for storing power on an individual basis
- Time of day pricing/seasonal rates to deal with peak issues
- Sensors for sport lights (energy efficiency)
Governance
- Competition is not a big issue – however NSPI charging tariffs could kill competition if it is not regulated.
- Some participants felt the lines and generation should be separated and owned separately.
- Some did not see the UARB as an effective regulator.
- Some saw how we manage the relationship between Emera and NSPI as a fundamental issue.
- A number of participants thought we should seek more export opportunities.
- Some participants suggested we should be looking at a regional system operator model.
- Some participants suggested performance standards must be reasonable.
**Note from department: There is no provincial tax on power; there is a provincial tax rebate on your bill. Only federal taxes are paid. However, there is corporate income tax paid on the profits of NSPI and Emera, and Independent Power Producers.