National Post natural gas is critical to Ontario’s sustainable development

Electrification will take a lot of time and money

According to a report by Natural Resources Canada, it will take approximately 142 years to retrofit all homes, including indoor electrification and water heating, at a current modernization rate of less than 1% per year. Additionally, it will take approximately 71 years to modernize all commercial and public buildings at an estimated cost of $20 to $30 billion per year.

As Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) noted, upgrading to an energy system that does not produce new gas will cost the province approximately $400 billion over 25 years. According to IESO, it could take 10 to 15 years to build large energy infrastructure such as hydropower, nuclear power plants and transmission.

In the transportation sector, which generates the most emissions in Ontario, electric buses have faced problems due to poor battery performance, especially in cold weather, and limited charging infrastructure. In Edmonton, about half of the electric bus fleet introduced in 2020 was retired in just three years, a similar pattern for public transit operators outside Ontario.

Meanwhile, renewable energy sources are not yet ready for large-scale implementation

Renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power are still sporadic and are expensive to store. According to an energy pathway study conducted for the City of Ottawa, wind farms in Ontario have only a small number of very long operating hours.