January 23, 2025 - ARAC meeting 10 am Ben Franklin Place, The Chamber 101 Centrepoint Dr.

Agenda Item 5.4 of the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee is to discuss the following report and its recommendations.

Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendments for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS)

This item has attachments. (To read the entire report go to SITE LOCATIONS, By-laws for BESS.)

File No. ACS2025-PDB-PS-0016 - City-Wide

This Item will be considered by Planning and Housing Committee on February 5, 2025.

Report Recommendation(s)
That Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee recommend Council:
1. Approve amendments to the Official Plan adding a new Section 4.12 and giving land use policy direction for the siting of Battery Energy Storage Systems, as either a principal or accessory use, as summarized in Document 1;
2. Approve amendments to the Zoning By-law 2008-250 adding a definition for Battery Energy Storage System as well as adding provisions for the siting of Battery Energy Storage Systems that are accessory to residential and non-residential uses in the urban and rural area as summarized in Document 2;
3. Approve that decisions on future requests for Municipal Support Resolution(s) that are associated with a Battery Energy Storage System as a principal use project be voted on separately as part of the consideration for the required Zoning By-law Amendment application;
4. Approve amendments to the Site Plan Control By-law No. 2014-256 as detailed in Document 5; and
5. Approve the Consultation Details Section of this report be included as part of the ‘brief explanation’ in the Summary of Written and Oral Public Submissions, to be prepared by the Office of the City Clerk and submitted to Council in the report titled, “Summary of Oral and Written Public Submissions for Items Subject to the Planning Act ‘Explanation Requirements’ at the City Council Meeting of February 12, 2025,” subject to submissions received between the publication of this report and the time of Council’s decision.

November 28, 2024 "The Morning Rush" podcast with Bill Carroll and Stephen Lecce

Bill Carroll chats with Stephen Lecce, Ontario Minister of Energy and Electrification, about the Ford government looking to build three new power plants.

Minister Lecce states that when considering new energy options the government should be "technology agnostic".

Listen now (about 11 minutes):

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/962-the-morning-rush-with-bill-73061038/episode/the-morning-rush-stephen-lecce-242980126/

October 24, 2024 "The Morning Rush" podcast with Bill Carroll and Stephen Lecce

Bill Carroll is joined by the Ontario Minister of Energy and Electrification Stephen Lecce to talk about how Ontario is aiming to become an energy superpower.

Listen now (about 11 minutes):

https://omny.fm/shows/580-cfra/the-morning-rush-stephen-lecce-october-24-2024?in_playlist=top-sound-bites&cloudflare-language=#description

Letter to Minister of Energy from APWC

To: The Honourable Stephen Lecce

From: Mark MacGowan, on behalf of the Alliance to Protect West Carleton

October 10, 2024

Minister Lecce,

A Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) has been proposed adjacent to the villages of Fitzroy Harbour and Galetta in the rural West Carleton area of the City of Ottawa by Evolugen, a subsidiary of Brookfield Renewables. The original IESO RFP process had the proponents reach out to the City of Ottawa for a Municipal Support Resolution (MSR), and that resolution was denied by the City of Ottawa in November 2023. Despite this, the proponents persisted with their application to the IESO. The Evolugen Fitzroy BESS was subsequently approved by the IESO with the provision that an MSR be acquired within 18 months plus 60 days.

The rural community surrounding the proposed site has spoken loud and clear: we do not want this facility in our community. As of August 11, 2024, a petition to deny an MSR for the Fitzroy BESS has been signed by over 630 local residents. How many times must a project be denied an MSR before the IESO accepts that the project does not have community support?

A letter from your predecessor, The Honourable Todd Smith, states the Ontario government position that, “Support from local communities is vital to new-build energy projects,” and “it is Todd Smith’s expectation that the IESO will be clear about requirements for a resolution from municipal council.”

As we submit our petition to the City of Ottawa Council, we ask you to please reconfirm the provincial government’s position that you will not approve proposals in communities that do not support them.

How do we stop this unwanted intrusion, and ensure that Evolugen BESS facilities are only built in communities more suitable and welcoming to this type of project?

We appreciate your guidance and support.

Best regards,

Mark MacGowan,

On Behalf of the Alliance to Protect West Carleton

https://alliancetoprotectwestcarleton.ca/

Response Letter from Ministry of Energy

To: Alliance to Protect West Carleton

From: Ministry of Energy

October 22, 2024

Thank you for taking the time to reach out to the Honourable Minister Stephen Lecce regarding your concerns around the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO)’s competitive procurement process for electricity resources. I am pleased to respond.

After more than a decade of stable electricity supply, and at times a surplus, in 2022 the IESO forecasted that Ontario will see a need for new electricity capacity resources beginning in 2025. To address this forecasted need, the then Minister of Energy issued a directive to the IESO in 2022 to procure approximately 4,000 MW of new capacity.

The IESO’s recent procurement initiatives, including the first Long-Term Procurement (LT1), have successfully procured almost 3,000 MW of new battery storage and 1,000 MW of natural gas generation. These resources are forecasted to meet our electricity needs through the end of the decade.

Our government remains committed to our firm position that no project from an IESO procurement will be built without a supportive municipal council resolution. If a proponent is unable to obtain municipal support, in accordance with the IESO contract, then the LT1 contract will be terminated and the project will not be built.

The IESO and Province are currently planning the second Long-Term Procurement (LT2). LT2 is a proposed competitive procurement, to launch by the end of the year, for new energy and capacity resources that can enter service as early as 2029. Building on our commitment for local support, the LT2 procurement will require proponents to obtain a municipal support resolution by the time of bid submission.

Thank you again for writing and sharing your thoughts on the upcoming procurements.

Tim Christie, P.Eng.

Director

Electricity Policy, Economics and System Planning Branch

January 23, 2025 - ARAC meeting 10 am Ben Franklin Place, The Chamber 101 Centrepoint Dr.

November 28, 2024 "The Morning Rush" podcast with Bill Carroll and Stephen Lecce

October 24, 2024 "The Morning Rush" podcast with Bill Carroll and Stephen Lecce

Letter to Minister of Energy from APWC

Response Letter from Ministry of Energy

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