Instead of retooling the technology, retool the people
By Lawrence Solomon
Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty is under fire for forcing smart meters onto the province’s electricity customers.
The meters make no economic sense for consumers, critics point out, costing consumers far more than can ever be offset through lower power bills.
The meters, in fact, make perfect sense when understood from Mr. McGuinty’s viewpoint, despite a total price tag estimated to run as high as $10-billion.
Mr. McGuinty isn’t in this for the money — if he was, he wouldn’t be closing economical coal plants while sinking cash into money-losing nuclear plants and money-losing long-distance transmission lines to carry power from money-losing industrial wind farms. These and his other money-losing initiatives will cause Ontario’s power prices to double or triple should he get his way.
No, Mr. McGuinty is in this to transform the province’s power system to make it coal free and reliant on nuclear and wind power. Money is no obstacle to him but Ontario citizens and businesses are, because they don’t behave as he’d like them to — and as his technologies of choice need them to behave.
Nuclear power, for example, is a technology that needs to run 24/7 for reasons of safety as well as economics. Nuclear can’t ramp up to meet the peak needs of Ontarians at, for example, 7 am, when people wake up and turn on their toasters, and nuclear can’t power down at 3 am, when most people are asleep and most factories lie idle.
This operating characteristic of nuclear power poses no problem for Mr. McGuinty during the day, when Ontarians consume all the nuclear power available to them. But it can be a problem big-time in the middle of the night when no one needs the excess power, not even customers in the United States, not even for free. To deal with Ontario’s unwanted nuclear surplus, the provincial power system at times even pays customers to take it off their hands — the more of this off-peak power they consume, the lower their power bills will be. At other times, the power system will spill water at hydroelectric facilities, rather than having them generate hydro power, in order to keep those nuclear reactors running.
Wind turbines create a similar off-peak problem for Mr. McGuinty. Like nuclear plants, power from wind turbines can’t be dispatched to customers when customers need it — the wind has a mind of its own. To make matters worse, the wind tends to blow best overnight, when it’s least needed.
Because Mr. McGuinty can’t retool his favoured technologies to get them to conform to the schedules of Ontarians, he has decided to retool Ontarians to get them to conform to the operating schedules of his technologies. This he is doing by punishing people and businesses who consume power at inconvenient times through high rates, to cajole them into shifting their usage to lower-cost off-peak periods.
So far, the punishment — a mere doubling of peak rates compared with off-peak — hasn’t been severe enough. Too few people are frying their eggs before 7 am — the time at which the punishment starts — and too many are cooking their dinners at 7 pm — smack dab during the peak punishment period. Mr. McGuinty’s solution? “We’ve got to make sure the differential between peak and off-peak is significant, so significant that it motivates people,” he explained this week.
By fiat, not by any rule of economics, Mr. McGuinty has decided that off-peak power users should be paying less, meaning that everyone else will necessarily need to pay more.
In this grand exercise to restructure the province’s power system, the Ontario citizen is a means to an end — making Ontario safe for nuclear and wind power.
Lawrence Solomon is executive director of Energy Probe and the author of The Deniers.
Read more: http://opinion.financialpost.com/2010/09/17/lawrence-solomon-are-you-frying-your-eggs-at-4-a-m-yet/#ixzz0ztNljfST
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
Consumers Resist Smart Meters After $3.4 Billion Stimulus Push
"Even with $3.4 billion in U.S. stimulus funds behind it, the race to install smart meters is starting to lose momentum, Bloomberg Businessweek reports in its Sept. 20 issue.
“The meters don’t benefit the consumer; they cost a lot of money, and we can’t opt out,” says Joshua Hart, the California- based director of Scotts Valley Neighbors Against Smart Meters.
In Hawaii, regulators rejected a $115 million plan in July by Hawaiian Electric Co. to install smart meters that residents and businesses would pay for. Almost a dozen California cities and counties have asked regulators to halt installations, saying the devices send inaccurate data to utilities. Homeowners in Bakersfield, California, have filed a class-action lawsuit against San Francisco-based PG&E, accusing the utility of overcharging since smart meters were installed in homes.
A study by Structure Group, a Houston-based independent consultant, found that PG&E’s smart meters are more accurate than the older versions they replaced. Paul Moreno, a PG&E spokesman, says the meters will save customers money over the long term. "
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-16/utility-customers-shun-smart-meters-after-3-4-billion-u-s-stimulus-push.html
“The meters don’t benefit the consumer; they cost a lot of money, and we can’t opt out,” says Joshua Hart, the California- based director of Scotts Valley Neighbors Against Smart Meters.
In Hawaii, regulators rejected a $115 million plan in July by Hawaiian Electric Co. to install smart meters that residents and businesses would pay for. Almost a dozen California cities and counties have asked regulators to halt installations, saying the devices send inaccurate data to utilities. Homeowners in Bakersfield, California, have filed a class-action lawsuit against San Francisco-based PG&E, accusing the utility of overcharging since smart meters were installed in homes.
A study by Structure Group, a Houston-based independent consultant, found that PG&E’s smart meters are more accurate than the older versions they replaced. Paul Moreno, a PG&E spokesman, says the meters will save customers money over the long term. "
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-16/utility-customers-shun-smart-meters-after-3-4-billion-u-s-stimulus-push.html
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Not so dumb meters
http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorials/article/861742--not-so-dumb-meters
The opposition parties at Queen’s Park have found a new bogeyman: smart meters, the devices that not only measure the volume of electricity used but also record the time of day. With the newly installed meters, local hydro companies can charge households a lower rate for electricity used during off-peak hours (after 9 p.m.). Spreading out demand will put less pressure on the system at peak.
That’s not how Conservative Leader Tim Hudak sees it, however. “Smart meters … squeeze more money out of the wallets of hard-working Ontario families,” he said in the legislature on Wednesday. “These are not smart meters; they’re nothing but (Premier) Dalton McGuinty’s latest tax machine.”
This is arrant nonsense. The meters provide consumers with choice: some -- those who are able to schedule their appliance use in off-peak hours -- will pay less on their hydro bills; others will pay more. Overall, the effect is revenue neutral.
Yes, hydro rates are going up for everyone, but that is not attributable to smart meters. Rather, rates are rising because the Liberal government is investing billions in new power plants and transmission lines after years of neglect under the preceding Conservative and NDP administrations. The days of cheap energy are over.
Conservatives and New Democrats are both suggesting hydro rates should be frozen. The problem with this suggestion is that the money is still needed for investments in power plants and lines. If the money doesn’t come from ratepayers, it will have to come from taxpayers (as it did in the last year of the Conservative government under Ernie Eves). The only other option is to stop investing and watch the system deteriorate to the point where we can no longer keep the lights on.
[RW: Note the comments, this is hitting everyone.]
The opposition parties at Queen’s Park have found a new bogeyman: smart meters, the devices that not only measure the volume of electricity used but also record the time of day. With the newly installed meters, local hydro companies can charge households a lower rate for electricity used during off-peak hours (after 9 p.m.). Spreading out demand will put less pressure on the system at peak.
That’s not how Conservative Leader Tim Hudak sees it, however. “Smart meters … squeeze more money out of the wallets of hard-working Ontario families,” he said in the legislature on Wednesday. “These are not smart meters; they’re nothing but (Premier) Dalton McGuinty’s latest tax machine.”
This is arrant nonsense. The meters provide consumers with choice: some -- those who are able to schedule their appliance use in off-peak hours -- will pay less on their hydro bills; others will pay more. Overall, the effect is revenue neutral.
Yes, hydro rates are going up for everyone, but that is not attributable to smart meters. Rather, rates are rising because the Liberal government is investing billions in new power plants and transmission lines after years of neglect under the preceding Conservative and NDP administrations. The days of cheap energy are over.
Conservatives and New Democrats are both suggesting hydro rates should be frozen. The problem with this suggestion is that the money is still needed for investments in power plants and lines. If the money doesn’t come from ratepayers, it will have to come from taxpayers (as it did in the last year of the Conservative government under Ernie Eves). The only other option is to stop investing and watch the system deteriorate to the point where we can no longer keep the lights on.
[RW: Note the comments, this is hitting everyone.]
CTV Lead Story: H1 admits to problems with the smart meters
Hi Mr. Wakefield,
I just thought I'd pass along my congratulations at finally being vindicated by Ontario Hydro (or whatever they call themselves). CTV news had a lead story at lunchtime about OH finally admitting that there was a problem with the smart meters--specifically that they can have inaccurate readings. The readings tend to be higher than the actual hydro used. According to the story, OH told the government, in a letter, last year that there was a problem with the meters. Now OH is saying that the government should slow down on implementation. At least until OH can get the problem fixed. It may also mean a by-hand recalculation of hydro bills.
Should be interesting.
I just thought I'd pass along my congratulations at finally being vindicated by Ontario Hydro (or whatever they call themselves). CTV news had a lead story at lunchtime about OH finally admitting that there was a problem with the smart meters--specifically that they can have inaccurate readings. The readings tend to be higher than the actual hydro used. According to the story, OH told the government, in a letter, last year that there was a problem with the meters. Now OH is saying that the government should slow down on implementation. At least until OH can get the problem fixed. It may also mean a by-hand recalculation of hydro bills.
Should be interesting.
RESIDENTIAL POWER RATES TO INCREASE AS MUCH AS 47% BY 2015
And most of it due to the Green Energy Act's Feed-in Tariff program so says a new report.
Ontario Electricity Total Bil Impact Analysis, August 2011 to July 2015 was prepared for the
Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters by Aegent Energy Advisors Inc.
It is available as a PDF on line here.
It is a must read.
For residential consumers they conclude:
For commercial consumers:
The cause of this increase is shown in the table on page 6 reproduced here:
Notice the Feed-In Tariff dominates the share of the increased costs of providing power. Include all costs of "green" energy combined and they take up 66% of the coming increase.
What is disturbing is this report claims, with justification, that demand will stay flat up and through 2015. So increased costs big time, more than $7 BILLION, but not more consumption.
Guess who is expected to pay for this.
With a 47-65% increase in power costs for business, that is going to drive business out of the province and at the same time increase the costs of every single item you buy that has this cost added in. Thus you, the consumer, are going to get a double whammy, as I predicted in the first month of this blog.
Ontario Electricity Total Bil Impact Analysis, August 2011 to July 2015 was prepared for the
Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters by Aegent Energy Advisors Inc.
It is available as a PDF on line here.
It is a must read.
For residential consumers they conclude:
Based on the forecast total unit cost increase and depending on the reference
unit cost, by early 2015, residential consumers would see their total unit cost
rise by 38% - 47% (over the significant increase already experienced in 2010).
This is equivalent to an average, annual, compounded increase of 6.7 - 8.0%
(again, over the significant increase already experienced in 2010).
For commercial consumers:
Based on the forecast total unit cost increase and depending on the reference
unit cost, by early 2015, non-residential consumers would see their total unit
cost rise by 47% - 64% (over the increase already experienced in 2010). This is
equivalent to an average, annual, compounded increase of 8.0% - 10.4% (again,
over the increase already experienced in 2010).
The cause of this increase is shown in the table on page 6 reproduced here:
Cumulative increase in Millions $ | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | % increase |
| Feed-In- Tariff (FIT) | 481 | 963 | 1,444 | 2,646 | 3,848 | 700% |
| Renewable Energy Standard Offer Program (RESOP) | - | 110 | 220 | 330 | 330 | 200% |
| Renewables (other) | - | 7 | 36 | 66 | 96 | 1271% |
| Bruce Power (existing) | 14 | 29 | 43 | 58 | 74 | 429% |
| Bruce Power (new) | - | 377 | 404 | 443 | 461 | 22% |
| OPG | 234 | 304 | 166 | 166 | 237 | 1% |
| Natural Gas | 57 | 86 | 111 | 111 | 192 | 237% |
| Non-Utility Generators (NUGs) | 94 | 197 | 158 | 258 | 170 | 81% |
| Conservation and Demand Management (COM) | 105 | 187 | 226 | 265 | 267 | 154% |
| Transmission | 189 | 299 | 505 | 704 | 1,012 | 435% |
| Distribution (non-Green Energy tlt) | 80 | 163 | 206 | 249 | 293 | 266% |
| Distribution (Green Energy tlt) | 156 | 310 | 465 | 615 | 759 | 387% |
| total | 1,411 | 3,032 | 3,986 | 5,911 | 7,739 | 448% |
The cumulative total dollar increase from 2011 to early 2015 is $ 7.739 billion. | ||||||
Notice the Feed-In Tariff dominates the share of the increased costs of providing power. Include all costs of "green" energy combined and they take up 66% of the coming increase.
What is disturbing is this report claims, with justification, that demand will stay flat up and through 2015. So increased costs big time, more than $7 BILLION, but not more consumption.
Guess who is expected to pay for this.
With a 47-65% increase in power costs for business, that is going to drive business out of the province and at the same time increase the costs of every single item you buy that has this cost added in. Thus you, the consumer, are going to get a double whammy, as I predicted in the first month of this blog.
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