Enabling Sustainable Growth
Goal 8: Support Growth of Renewable Energy Supply
Optimize provincial energy resources to contribute to sustainable economic prosperity within Newfoundland and Labrador.
Our province has an abundance of renewable resources. As the global demand for renewable energy increases, there is immense opportunity to avail of existing and undeveloped resources to reduce greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions. We also have the ability to supply neighbouring jurisdictions who wish to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and transition to renewable energy. Our priority is to share our utility expertise and lessons learned from operating the provincial electrical system for over 50 years to support the sustainable development and management of our renewable energy resources. Ultimately, our goal is to use our renewable resources to provide maximum value for the people of our province and support economic prosperity in our local communities.
Objectives
Evaluate potential renewable development opportunities and proposals for integration into our provincial electricity system. This will require thorough and transparent analysis, including studies to understand the potential sources of renewable energy feasible in our province and system – such as the use of wind, battery or pumped storage alternatives. We will also respond to industry partners on potential purchases of economical renewable energy.
Partner with our provincial government to support the responsible growth of the renewable energy industry. We will provide our utility expertise to identify viable opportunities as new industries such as hydrogen emerge. As other industries transition from fossil-fuel powered operations to renewable sources, we will inform public policy on impacts of resulting load growth that may be associated with development of renewables. We will work with external markets to increase awareness of provincial renewable resource opportunities.
Explore opportunities to maximize the potential value of our existing generating assets. Where it is economical and technically possible to do so, we will invest in our existing generating assets to make them capable of providing more energy or capacity to the provincial electrical system. In addition to executing projects which are already planned, we will evaluate our existing facilities, including the Churchill Falls Generating Station, to identify additional opportunities and ensure such assets are positioned to provide maximum benefit to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador.