Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens at a Hydro One announcement on Monday, April 4 2022. (Photo courtesy of City of Windsor Facebook live stream)Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens at a Hydro One announcement on Monday, April 4 2022. (Photo courtesy of City of Windsor Facebook live stream)
Windsor

Hydro One transmission projects expedited to meet growing energy needs

Less than a week after Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens pled with officials to speed up the process for a new Hydro One line between Chatham and Lakeshore, he's gotten his wish.

The Ontario government has issued an Order-in-Council declaring three transmission line projects as priorities. The 230-kilovolt line from the Chatham Switching Station to the new Lakeshore Transformer Station is already under construction. The other two are the St. Clair Line running from the Lambton Transformer Station south of Sarnia to the Chatham Switching Station, and the Longwood to Lakeshore Line, a 500-kilovolt line stretching from west of London to Lakeshore.

The proposed Hydro One Lines. (Photo courtesy of Hydro One) The proposed Hydro One Lines. (Photo courtesy of Hydro One)

New transmission projects often take years to develop. The declaration means the Ontario Energy Board must accept that the lines are needed while assessing if they are in the public's interest. It will speed up the approval process and bring the projects online faster.

Another two projects will meet the region's long-term needs; a second 500-kilovolt line from Longwood to Lakeshore and a 230-kilovolt line from the Windsor area to Lakeshore.

Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Hydro One, Jay Armitage, told reporters the line from Chatham to Lakeshore should be complete in 2025 when Stellantis and LGES plan to open the new EV battery plant.  Construction on that should start later this year.

"I think it would be fair to say this is a long-term plan," said Armitage. "So, you will see these lines being developed, and then constructed over time."

Stellantis and LGES both say energy security is integral to constructing the new plant, which would employ 2,500 people.

Leamington Mayor Hilda MacDonald is particularly excited. The greenhouse sector has grown faster than anticipated, and energy supply has been an ongoing concern.

"The industry has grown exponentially in the last five years, even beyond what our expectations were," she added. "So many times, government steps up when the need has been there for years. This is pro-active."

Some have expressed concerns about the line currently under construction. The Municipality of Lakeshore objects to the route, and some farmers in Chatham-Kent fear hydro towers will negatively impact their farming operations.

However, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Energy Todd Smith, Steven Crawford, said an expedited process does not mean Hydro One can cut corners.

"While these measures will create efficiencies, I want to be clear they do not remove any obligation from Hydro One to meet the requirements of the Environmental Assessment Act," he said. "This will ensure each line is planned responsibly and in consultation with Indigenous and local communities."

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