Ontario's shift toward clean, renewable energy is strengthening the province's economy by attracting good jobs, investment and opportunities for Windsor-area families.
United Solar is creating 80 new clean energy jobs by investing $12 million in a manufacturing facility in LaSalle. This facility will make solar panels for the growing clean energy economy in Ontario and supply renewable energy projects under Ontario's Feed-in Tariff program, which is building a strong clean energy industry in the province.
Windsor electricians will also be benefiting from a 10-kilowatt solar project to provide valuable, specialized training in the growing clean energy sector. Operated by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 773, the project is one of almost 5,500 small-scale solar installations feeding clean power into Ontario's electricity grid through the province's microFIT program.
Ontario's Long-Term Energy Plan is getting Ontario off dirty coal-fired power and replacing it with clean, renewable sources of power -- like wind, solar and bio-energy. This transition to a clean, modern and reliable electricity system is creating thousands of new, good jobs and keeping the lights on in our homes and businesses.
To help Ontarians manage the costs of turning on more clean power, the McGuinty government:
- Is taking 10 per cent off electricity bills for families, farms and businesses over the next five years with the new Ontario Clean Energy Benefit. It has helped average household bills remain flat compared with the same time last year.
- Has moved the start of the Time-of-Use off-peak period from 9 p.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays, providing an extra 10 hours of electricity every week, at the lowest available rate.
QUICK FACTS
- According to the WindsorEssex Economic Development Corporation, just over 1,000 new local jobs have been announced in the renewable energy sector over the past 15 months.
- Ontario has the most solar PV capacity online of any jurisdiction in Canada and the 10 largest solar farms in Canada are all located in Ontario.
- Since 2009, more than 30 businesses have announced they are setting up or expanding plants to manufacture parts for the solar and wind industry.
- By the end of 2010, Ontario's Green Energy Act helped to create 13,000 jobs, well on the way to creating 50,000 jobs by the end of 2012.
- Coal-fired generation was down 90 per cent in the first three months of 2011 compared to the same timeframe in 2003.
- An average household can expect to save about $150 in 2011 through the Ontario Clean Energy Benefit.
- Ontario has conserved more than 1,700 megawatts of electricity over the past five years - the equivalent of taking more than half a million homes off the electricity grid.
