Request the reversal of a decision rendered by the B.C. Utilities Commission with regards to the Okanagan Capacity Upgrade project, which was presented by Fortis BC to twin a 30km stretch of their natural gas pipeline in order to continue providing natural gas to current and future commercial and residential customers and would be fully funded by Fortis BC.
The Penticton & Wine Country Chamber of Commerce has sent a letter to both the Minister of Energy Josie Osborne, and the CEO of the BC Utilities Commission Mark Jaccard.
In it, we highlight out 4 key points that make us question the denial of FortisBC’s Okanagan Capacity Upgrade Project:
1. B.C. does not produce enough electricity or renewable energy to meet current demands, let alone transitioning new and existing homes and businesses to electric heat.
2. B.C. has most recently supported hydrogen production despite not producing enough electricity, including a project in Prince George that would require 800 megawatts of electricity (for comparison sake, the new Site C dam will generate 1,100 megawatts).
3. B.C. purchased 20% of its electricity from the U.S. last year to meet demand. 60% of American electricity is generated from coal, crude oil, and ironically, natural gas – all fuels that contradict the CleanBC Roadmap.
4. The B.C. Utilities Commission took the opinion of a two-member panel over that of local governments including the Penticton Indian Band and the Regional District of the Okanagan Similkameen.
We are hopeful that with another year of droughts on the horizon, the B.C. Utilities Commission will reverse its decision so that Okanagan homes will have the ability to utilize B.C’s own natural gas, rather than energy from a foreign supplier, and ask the Minister of Energy, Mines, and Low Carbon Innovation to have BCUC's CEO review and reverse the denial of this important project.
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Development, establishment, amendment or termination of any program, policy, directive or guideline of the government of British Columbia or a Provincial entity
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Energy, Infrastructure
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