Province one step closer to delivering natural gas to rural Ontario

Thursday, February 26, 2015

by SUSAN MANN

The province took another step towards delivering natural gas to rural Ontario when the Ontario Energy Board issued a letter last week asking interested companies to propose plans for gas distribution.

The Feb. 18 letter from the province’s regulator of electricity and natural gas sectors invited parties “with appropriate financial and technical expertise” to propose one or more plans for natural gas distribution.”

Gas expansion was a hot discussion topic on Monday at the combined annual meeting of the Rural Ontario Municipal Association/Ontario Good Roads Association, says Don McCabe, Ontario Federation of Agriculture president. The meeting ran until the end of day today.

The federation and many municipal leaders made it very clear to the government that they want gas expansion sooner rather than later, he notes.

From a farm perspective, natural gas expansion is progressing slower “than what we’d like because, bottom line, it’s a very necessary piece of infrastructure,” McCabe says.

The federation has been asking the province to expand natural gas delivery to rural communities and McCabe says federation members are pleased with the Energy Board’s latest step.

But there are still a number of steps to go before construction of any infrastructure projects can begin, he cautions.

The energy board says in its letter the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure will use $200 million of its $230 million budget for Natural Gas Access loans over two years to help communities partner with utilities to extend access to natural gas. The remainder will be used to fund Natural Gas Economic Development grants “to accelerate projects with clear economic development potential,” the letter says.

But first the ministry must establish policy on how the grant and loan money can be used and what the program criteria will be, McCabe says.

As well, the energy board has regulations on expansion “that need to be considered.” And that means “we’re still a ways off in getting the money totally out the door and getting the process started.”

Construction of the infrastructure to extend natural gas to rural Ontario will likely begin later this year or next year, McCabe says. BF