The provincial CA and federal EDA executives had a joint meeting a week ago and here’s a brief update on what was discussed, what the near term plans are, etc.

Next meeting
The next EDA and CA combined meeting is on August 18th at 7:30pm (in the Glebe).  If you’d like to attend then drop me an email.

PRIDE Parade
Things are coming together nicely for pride parade. It’s a dutch date between us and Ottawa-Vanier – but of course EVERYONE is welcome to walk with us.  We won’t have Adriane Carr’s awesome “Shades of Green” swag from last year but we’ll bring all the enthusiasm nonetheless.
Green Party of Ontario Nomination Race
The CA has passed a motion that a nomination meeting will be held in September. A final date hasn’t been selected yet because we’re trying to coordinate the date with Ottawa-Vanier so Mike Schreiner will be able to make one trip up and attend both nomination meetings. If you’d like to seek the nomination you can contact the CA President, Paul Merriam (pmerriam at technologywise.net).

Carleton – Orientation Week
The Carleton Greens rebuilt themselves last year and I’m looking forward to getting out to the campus to help run a table during orientation (or anytime really). So join the Carleton Campus Greens and stop by when we get something going. Jon – I’m looking at you!

Fall Fundraiser
Look for a GPO fundraiser in the last week of September – we’ll be doing a dinner/talk/something-fun the week after the nomination meeting to get the ball really rolling for the provincial election next fall.  The plan for this event just hatched – so if you’d like to bring ideas forward for speakers, etc, I’m listening!
EDA Constitution
It was a long journey, but the federal EDA is now officially the “Ottawa Centre Federal Green Party Association”, courtesy of a motion the national council passed in June.  I realize this isn’t the most exciting news, but to anyone that was involved in getting the EDA’s constitution fixed up in 2010 you’ll be happy to hear the last item has been stricken from the TODO list!

The Green Party is launching a province-wide campaign to call on Premier McGuinty to honour his word and stand behind the promised pricing for all current solar MicroFIT applications. Recent tariff reductions for ground mounted solar projects will hurt thousands of farmers and other project owners, as well as solar installers and manufactures.

Take Action Today!

Act now to help pressure the Ontario government to stop the planned reduction in prices paid for ground-mounted solar projects:

• Get informed. Read Mike Schreiner’s open letter to the Minister Energy and Infrastructure.
• Share the news. Share Mike’s letter on facebook with friends and colleagues
• Tell politicians what you think. Click here for a list.
• Organize a press conference or other local action. Click here to join our campaign.
• Attend an event. Upcoming activities where you can learn more and speak out.
• Click here to follow provincial press coverage of the MicroFIT issue.

Part 1: Kevin O’Donnell
O’Donnell criticized the McGuinty government’s decision to change the microFIT rules without any consultation from the solar industry or their customers.

Part 2: Jim Cummings
Cummings described how the sudden price change shows a lack of commitment by the government to their own program which has led to instability and uncertainty in the solar power industry.

Part 3: Rob Beckers
Beckers described how the OPA and the Ministry of Energy have cast a shadow on the industry’s future without any real justification for the sudden pricing changes.

Part 4: David Long
Long described how the slow processing time for microFIT applications, culminating in the pricing reversal, has shaken consumer confidence and will make it very difficult for solar companies to win back customers.

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release

July 23, 2010

NEWS

Green Party of Ontario (GPO) representative Kevin O’Donnell joined local solar businessmen Rob Beckers (President, Solacity Inc.), David Long (President, Pheonix Radiance) and James Cummings (President, Clearly Solar) at a news conference in Ottawa today to demand the McGuinty government honour its promise to pay green energy entrepreneurs 80.2 ¢/kWh for solar projects under 10 kilowatts.

• O’Donnell criticized the McGuinty government’s decision to change the microFIT rules without any consultation from the solar industry or their customers.
• Beckers described how the OPA and the Ministry of Energy have cast a shadow on the industry’s future without any real justification for the sudden pricing changes.
• Long described how the slow processing time for microFIT applications, culminating in the pricing reversal, has shaken consumer confidence and will make it very difficult for solar companies to win back customers.
• Cummings described how the sudden price change shows a lack of commitment by the government to their own program which has led to instability and uncertainty in the solar power industry.

The Green Party is launching a province-wide campaign to call on Premier McGuinty to honour his word and stand behind the promised pricing for all current solar microFIT applications. Click here to learn more about the campaign: http://www.gpo.ca/node/2615

QUOTES

“The Green Party considers the solar sector to be an emerging industry that Ontario can be a leader in. We must ensure that investors, businesses and individuals can depend on the Ontario government to honour its commitments. We see the unexpected rate changes as damaging to this emerging industry and damaging to the ability of entrepreneurs to fulfill Ontario’s potential as a sustainable energy leader.”
- Kevin O’Donnell, GPO Representative in Ottawa Centre

“This sudden price change shows a lack of commitment on the part of the Ontario Government to their own program. Changing the rules half way through the game demonstrates instability and uncertainty – the last thing investors want to see. It will kill jobs.”
- Jim Cummings, President, Clearly Solar Inc.

“This rate change has cost us several orders, and discouraged many potential customers. By taking 6 months to process applications the OPA is in essence changing the rules of the MicroFIT program retro-actively, and causing great uncertainty for industry and home owners investing in green energy. A more equitable system would fix the rules, including the feed-in-tariffs, as they apply on the application date. The justification given by both the OPA and the Ministry of Energy are not based on realistic data, and we would very much like to see a real analysis of the costs involved. Keep in mind that even if the $1B number would be correct, this works out to just $1.38 per months on our hydro bill. Is that worth throwing away the future of a vibrant new industry that provides employment for Ontarians, and that can propel Ontario to be a world leader in green energy?”
- Rob Beckers, President, Solacity Inc.

“The introduction of the MicroFIT program created a surge of interest for prospective solar customers in Ontario. It stimulated the growth of Phoenix Radiance, the new green energy division of SageTea Group. There is no question that the slow processing time for MicroFIT applications has impacted our business. This reversal by the Ontario Government will make it difficult to win back potential customers. Ground mounted solar projects are the best ones to do because they have the lowest construction costs. Drilling into people’s rooftops, especially when it involves third party roof warranties made rooftop based solar systems something that we chose to avoid. Since the government is targeting our exact product line, we must now re-evaluate our green energy marketing program.”
- David Long, President, Phoenix Radiance – SageTea Group Renewable Energy Division

QUICK FACTS

• The Ontario Power Authority (OPA) says it has received over 15,000 contract applications since the microFIT program was announced 9 months ago.
• The majority of applications have been for ground-mounted solar panels predominantly in rural areas. Ground mounted panels are the target of the government’s cuts.
• The OPA had only approved 3,000 of the contract applications when the cut was suddenly announced. This means close to 10,000 people could be affected by this cutback which will reduce the income on their investment by 27%.
• A 10 kilowatt solar project costs $70,000 or more to install.

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Contact:
Kevin O’Donnell
(613) 203-2620
kevin@kodonnell.ca