Ford’s Bad Energy Choices: Taking on Enbridge

Ontario Project

Ford Bad Energy Choices action group

David Robertson

GMM Feb 28 2024

Ontario Project

Stop Ford’s climate crimes

Adaptation

Ford’s Bad Energy Choices

Greenbelt

HWY 413

Ontario Project

Stop Ford’s climate crimes

Adaptation

Ford’s Bad Energy Choices

Greenbelt

413

First marker: COP 28: The UAE consensus

• countries agreed to
• “transitioning away from fossil fuels in energy system... and accelerating action in this critical decade.”

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COP 28 : The UAE consensus

• countries agreed to

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• Triple renewable capacity and double energy efficiency

Second marker: And then we have Ford and Enbridge

Doug Ford Premier

Greg Ebel CEO Enbridge

Third marker: Recent poll

But even among PC voters

“I made a promise to you that I wouldn’t touch the Greenbelt. I broke that promise and for that I’m very, very sorry…It was a mistake to open the Greenbelt”.�

Fourth Marker: Ford U-turns

U-turns and walk backs

• Greenbelt
• Bill 124
• Renewables
• “If I could tear up every wind turbine in this province I would,” December 16, 2019.

Now adding 5,000 MW of new renewables

• One of the earliest decisions of the Doug Ford’s government was an abrupt right turn away from supporting and developing Ontario’s growing renewable energy sector.
• Soon after taking office in 2018, Doug Ford tore up Ontario’s 758 clean energy contracts. Four of five were for solar
• To date, it’s cost us all $231 million and counting

Ontario Project Working Group

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• Can we have a repeat---a victory in rolling back Ford’s Bad Energy Choices?

Fossil Gas

High cost

Health risks

Enbridge and Ford

Cozy relationship Corruption?

Greenwashing/

propaganda

Alternatives

• Clean and safe renewables
• Efficiency/conservation
• Community energy (DER)

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GHGs

The Ford Enbridge Alliance

Statement of issues/problem

• Enbridge is waging an aggressive and misleading fossil gas campaign
• Enbridge has convinced the Ford government that fossil gas plays a central role in Ontario’s energy future
• The Ford/Enbridge Alliance is
• Limiting our energy choices
• Forcing us into high cost energy
• Harming our families’ health
• Restricting our efforts to reduce carbon pollution (GHG emissions)
• Denying future generations clean, safe and affordable energy

Enbridge

• Pipeline Giant

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Enbridge facts and figures in Ontario

• About 70 per cent of Ontario households use natural gas for home heating.
• There are 3.8 million households in Ontario using gas.
• Enbridge supplies 92% of those households.
• Enbridge Gas Inc. operates 151,500 km of gas transportation, distribution mainlines, and service lines, in Ontario.

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Enbridge Strategy: four prongs

1. Keep and expand its customer base
2. Greenwash methane (natural gas)
3. Mount a corporate counter offensive

4. Get Ford government support for its plans

• Greenwashing
• Pipeline Expansion
• Hybrid heating systems
• Locking customers into high price methane

Enbridge’s Goal---lock Ontario consumers into a fossil fuel future and high energy costs

Le devoir

False Claim: Diversified system (gas and electric)is more cost effective and efficient than Electrification

Globe and Mail paid content

False and misleading marketing

Environmental defence

Greenwashing fossil fuels

The Fossil Fuel Playbook

• Deny
• Delay
• Distract
• Attack

So, today I want to make the case for Canada, and more specifically Central Canada, to answer the call and play an outsized and important global role—much as it has in the past.

Canada’s moments of Greatness

• Points to moments in modern history when Canada answered the call for greatness. When we played an outsized role of the world stage
• Fighting the Nazis in WWII
• Deescalating the Suez canal crisis in 1956
• In the late 1980’s. when Canada “ cajoled, pushed and demanded that the Commonwealth stand united in the repudiation of apartheid…”

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Our historic destiny (according to Enbridge)

Now principled leadership on a global scale

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“So, here’s my message: our country is uniquely positioned to be a leading exporter of LNG for decades to come. We have the supply. We have sustainable production. We offer short travel times. We are the complete package.”

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(We are) an energy superpower

Deny, delay, distract and now attack

Ford

• It is easy to understand Enbridge’s game plan
• It’s harder to understand why the Ford government is so beholden to Enbridge gas.

Ford support of Enbridge fossil fuels

• Expansion in the number of methane fired electricity plants
• Stop the gas plant campaign

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• Ontario government subsidizing Enbridge with our money through the Gas Expansion Program
• Phase 1 and 2 ---$360 million to Enbridge paid for in customers’ bills

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• Ford government insisted that Enbridge deliver the the federal governments Greener Homes Grant program in Ontario
• Promote gas heat pumps and hybrid gas systems rather than electrical heat pumps
• Ontario established the Clean Home Heating Initiative to help them out

Friends in high places

• Ford’s pilot project, Clean Home Heating Initiative, provides $8.2 million to about 1500 families in targeted cities to ”switch to hybrid heating”---a heat pump with a gas furnace.
• Energy Affordability Project provides a free heat pump to customers switching from electric baseboard heat to a cold climate heat pump.
• Ford refusing to make changes in the building code that would restrict gas hookups
• Enbridge provides builders free gas systems in new subdivisions
• Ongoing support for Enbridge’s controversial Line 5
• Against Indigenous opposition

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OEB Decision: Dec 2023

• Enbridge provides developers free gas hook-ups for new homes
• The cost is about $4,400 a unit
• Enbridge justifies the expense by assuming the homeowner will buy gas for the next 40 years (revenue horizon)

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OEB acknowledges energy transition

• The OEB decided that in the face of an energy transition that economic calculus no longer made sense.
• Enbridge should stop providing developers with free gas hookups. The revenue horizon should be reduced from 40 years to 0 years.
• Enbridge was also planning a massive expansion of its gas pipelines on the same economic understanding. The OEB though Enbridge should pay more attention to the risk of stranded assets.

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And now we have the Keeping Energy Costs Down Act

“We also received the Ontario Energy Board decision on Phase One of our 2024 rebasing application. We are actively working with the government of Ontario to address issues we see with the decision …

Energy minister : Todd Smith

Taking care of Enbridge Act

• If the government decides a gas pipeline is in the public interest the OEB has to go along with it.
• If the government wants to suspend an OEB hearing, the OEB must comply
• If the govt decides consumers should pay for a pipeline the OEB can’t object,
• If the government wants the OEB to hold a hearing and dictate the terms of that hearing then the OEB has to understand who’s calling the shots.

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• It also wants the OEB to listen more to the advice and recommendations of the gas industry.

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Locking in the future to fossil gas

• The government is adamant that government policy will dictate outcomes.
• And to be sure that the revenue horizon is 40 years (the position that the OEB had rejected) the government is going to announce a new gas policy in the coming weeks..
• And to make sure nothing gets in the way: “The Bill provides that the exercise of powers under the sections are “not subject to any “duties of procedural fairness”.

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Fossil Gas

High cost

Health risks

Enbridge and Ford

Cozy relationship Corruption?

Greenwashing/

propaganda

Alternatives

• Clean and safe renewables
• Efficiency/conservation
• Community energy (DER)

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GHGs

Developing campaign

Action Groups

• Exposing Enbridge
• Bill 165

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Other initiatives

• No more gas plants
• Terre
• Coalition
• Kingston
• No more gas pipelines
• Bobcaygeon (Kawartha Lakes SCAN)
• Renewables
• OCAA

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In thinking about the campaign

• SCAN! leads
• SCAN! support and amplify
• SCAN! in collaboration

1. Exposing Enbridge

• Group of about a dozen members
• Legal, procedural, complaints, counter claims, committee hearings,
• Exploring links (CELA)
• Newsworthy events to get media coverage

2. Bill 165 and new gas policy

• Ramp up efforts to quickly to resist Bill 165
• Respond to Ford’s new gas policy
• Municipal resolution
• Environmental defence drafted a resolution that we hope SCAN! members take to their municipal councils
• Possibility of Queen’s Park action in March

3. No more gas plants

SCAN is part of the No more gas plant coalition

In addition,

Some SCAN! locals such as Kingston have been organizing around the issue

We are involved with TERRE

• Toronto based group that is fighting the expansion of the Portland's Gas Plant

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4. No more gas pipelines

• Opposition to Bill 165
• SCAN! Kawartha has been doing work around the Enbridge gas pipeline expansion to Bobcaygeon
• A subsidy to Enbridge of $68 million for 3,700 hook-ups.
• The local has had articles in the newspaper, deputations to city council

5. renewables: support and amplify

SCAN! recently signed on to the letter from OCAA with its call to triple renewables.

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OCAA has an individual letter platform that would be great if hundreds of SCAN! members signed on.

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They are also making pamphlets available for distribution. We should see about getting them out and around.

6. Indigenous lens

• Highlight and promote Indigenous renewable projects

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• New film about the Bad River tribe’s fight against Enbridge Line 5.

SCAN! activist ecosystem�

• Members from a number of SCAN! Committees
• Members from a number of SCAN! Locals

• We have SCAN! members participating in other group’s initiatives such as the recent Citizens Climate Lobby day at Queens Park.
• We have members participating in a range of community initiatives in Kingston, Terre in Toronto, Kawartha Lakes, Barrie

Invitation

• Invite more participation from other SCAN! committees
• More participation from individual SCAN! members

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The next Ontario election is June, 2026

Globe and Mail