VANCOUVER | UNCEDED xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (MUSQUEAM), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (SQUAMISH) AND səlilwətaɬ (TSLEIL-WAUTUTH) TERRITORIES — The David Suzuki Foundation welcomes the announcement of 30-year electricity purchase agreements for nine wind projects from the new major procurement in British Columbia for up to 5,000 gigawatt hours per year of new renewable electricity, to be contracted with Indigenous partners. This will boost BC Hydro’s supply by eight per cent.
Thomas Green, Senior Climate Policy Adviser, David Suzuki Foundation, said:
“This is exactly the kind of commitment to renewable energy and wind energy in particular that’s a great opportunity for British Columbia. As our economy swaps fossil fuels for electricity, these Indigenous-led renewable projects are being planned for maximum community benefit and promise to get on the grid quickly.
“We support all provinces in their move to 100 per cent clean, affordable, secure electricity by 2035. B.C. is demonstrating what leadership looks like to other provinces and Indigenous leaders are demonstrating the important role of renewable energy in creating sustainable, thriving communities.
“Clean electricity has every opportunity to keep energy bills low, create thousands of good jobs, support energy sovereignty for Indigenous communities and deliver better health outcomes for everyone.
“We need to ensure that when these new Indigenous-led power projects come online in the near future, they support local communities to run heat pumps and businesses to run on electricity, rather than being diverted to power the growth of energy-intensive and climate-damaging liquefied natural gas projects. The LNG industry would require about eight Site C hydroelectric dams to power its terminals and upstream gas production. It’s a risky economic bet in a world rapidly transitioning to renewables. It could also take away the benefit of the affordable wind power announced here.
“Affordability research and numerous modelling studies, including research by the David Suzuki Foundation, show that consumers will benefit from cheaper overall energy bills as we shift toward clean electricity and away from high-cost fossil fuels.”
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Background:
The federal government is expected to announce the final clean electricity regulations, which aim to put Canada on a path for net-zero electricity by 2035, before the end of 2024.
David Suzuki Foundation research shows a 100 per cent zero-emissions electricity grid is possible for Canada by 2035: Shifting Power: Zero-Emissions Electricity Across Canada by 2035.
All G7 countries share the goal of 100 per cent net-zero emissions electricity, supported by the International Energy Agency and the United Nations as necessary for achieving overall net-zero emissions by 2050.
Affordability modelling released in November 2024 by the Transition Accelerator and modelling released in 2023 by the Canadian Climate Institute show most households will see a decrease in overall energy bills as we switch from fossil fuels to clean electricity for household energy uses.
No matter how Canada produces its electricity, financial supports will be needed for the most vulnerable already challenged by energy poverty and other affordability concerns. These supports exist, and the David Suzuki Foundation joins in the call for them to be implemented.
Last year, consumers in the European Union saved an estimated 100 billion euros in electricity costs by moving to renewables like wind and solar.
Wind and solar are the cheapest forms of electricity in history, according to the International Energy Agency and have been since 2020.
For more information or media interviews, please contact:
Theresa Beer, tbeer@davidsuzuki.org