The dirty little secret of importing power
COMMENT: The "net importer" claim has yet to be demonstrated convincingly. BC Hydro's tables of summary data don't draw a line between energy flows for domestic use and those bought and sold by Powerex in its energy trades. "Line losses" are a convenient fudge factor.
And with the "net importer" claim, is the implied statement that BC is importing to meet domestic needs for electricity.
Both of these assertions - that BC is in fact a net importer, and that the importing is necessary to meet BC's domestic needs - have become a mantra in the mouths of the BC government and its advisory groups like the BC Progress Board, the BC Competition Council, the BC Chamber of Commerce, the Independent Power Producers of BC, and BC Hydro.
But a competent, independent and thorough deconstruction of the figures BC Hydro provides has not been undertaken. It would more likely reveal that the Powerex trading activity is accountable for the apparent net importer shibboleth.
And in the end, this trading activity makes a profit for British Columbia. That's what Powerex exists to do - buy and sell electricity. It buys low, sells high. If some of that bought power doesn't find a market, BC nevertheless remains a net profiteer in the power trading business.
Some considerations:
- In the story below, the charge is that BC Hydro is buying dirty coal-fired power from Alberta and that the CO2 load from that power should be added to BC's GHG emission data. There's some merit in that, but there's some double-counting going on too - that CO2 has already been added to Alberta's stats.
- In 2006, BC Hydro chose to pay Island Co-generation to shut down, finding it cheaper to import power. Island Co-gen is a gas-fired plant in Campbell River which provides steam to the Elk Falls Mill, electricity to BC Hydro, and for which BC Hydro provides the natural gas. Was BC Hydro purchasing clean hydro power from the Bonneville Power Authority, or coal-fired power from Alberta? And how did those imports add into the "net importer" totals?
- Burrard Thermal is an even bigger discretionary use of imports, with a capacity of 900 MW, but not operated for cost, environmental and political reasons. Should those imports be added to the "net importer" totals? Can the net importer argument be then used in the campaign to build more generation in BC?
- Powerex entered an agreement in 2004 to purchase the first three years' output from a new coal-fired generation plant in Hardin, Montana. The plant started operation in 2005. The power is sold in the United States. But should those CO2 emissions be counted as BC emissions, since the place the buck stops is in BC, not in Montana? Should that plant be considered as BC's first coal-fired generation plant, rather than the Compliance Energy Princeton project, or the AES Wapiti plant?
- And where do the 4500 GWh of Columbia River Treaty Downstream Benefits fit into this discussion? Hydro-power that belongs to British Columbians, but like the Hardin coal-power, generated in the US, and sold in the US market.
- If the CO2 emissions from imported electricity are counted where the CO2 is emitted, then Alberta should take the hit for the electricity BC imports. What is the analagoue, and what is appropriate, with all of the coal that BC exports? After all, the carbon remains fixed in the coal until it's long gone from BC's borders. Are our hands so clean? Where does that buck stop? Just askin'
The "net importer" claim is being used by the government to achieve a policy agenda. But is it a false claim? A misleading claim? A misunderstood claim? It would be nice to know. Any deconstructers out there?
'Clean' B.C. relies on coal-based plants from Alberta, U.S. to fuel its energy needs
WENDY STUECK
Globe and Mail
27 March 2007
VANCOUVER -- As its name suggests, B.C. Hydro counts on water to keep the lights on, tapping a network of dams and reservoirs to churn out electricity around the clock. That network has provided British Columbians with some of the cheapest electricity on the continent.
It also helps British Columbians feel a little smug when it comes to climate change. Hydro projects, once up and running, don't generate greenhouse gases, giving B.C. a huge advantage over hydro-poor jurisdictions when it comes to reducing emissions.
But not all of the province's electricity comes from mighty rivers and not all of it is clean.
Since 2001, B.C. has been a net importer of electricity, bringing more power into the province than it ships to customers such as California. Much of the imported electricity comes from emissions-heavy coal-fired plants in Alberta. B.C.'s new energy plan calls for the province to be self-sufficient by 2016.
It's a dirty little secret. 'Clean' B.C. relies on coal-
based plants from Alberta, such as this one, to fuel
its energy needs.
Until then, the province's emissions picture may not be as virtuous as its hydro-heavy reputation would suggest. B.C. Hydro reported 1,223 kilotonnes of greenhouse-gas emissions in 2005. If emissions from electricity imported from Alberta and the U.S. were taken into account, that total would more than double, to 3,259 kilotonnes, the David Suzuki Foundation estimates.
"Our [greenhouse gas] numbers for B.C. exclude the footprint of that imported power," said Guy Dauncey, president of British Columbia Sustainable Energy Association. "Our footprint extends way beyond British Columbia."
B.C. Hydro does not include emissions from imported electricity in its greenhouse-gas reports. That's not unusual: For the most part, greenhouse-gas emissions are reported in the jurisdiction where the energy is produced, not where it's consumed.
But some energy experts are taking a different approach, arguing that emissions from imports should be taken into account as part of a move toward life-cycle accounting for energy choices.
Hadi Dowlatabadi, a professor at the University of British Columbia's Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability, recently co-wrote a paper on the economics of ground-source heat pumps. As part of that study -- geared to finding which parts of Canada might see the greatest bang for their buck from widespread adoption of heat pumps -- Prof. Dowlatabadi looked at how electricity imports affected province's greenhouse-gas intensities (the amount of CO2 sent into the atmosphere for every unit of electricity or economic production).
Without imports, B.C.'s GHG intensity is 21 -- tied with Newfoundland and bested only by hydro-blessed Quebec, which had a GHG intensity of nine, the study found.
Taking imports into account, however, B.C.'s GHG intensity climbs to 80 -- still a far cry from Alberta's rating of 891, the highest in the country.
Greenhouse-gas emissions from imported electricity were a factor in the province's call for energy self-sufficiency, said Hydro spokeswoman Elisha Moreno.
"We're aware that some of the energy that we use is generated from natural gas, coal or nuclear. And there are some emissions that come as a result of those," Ms. Moreno said. "So if we can look at using green energy within B.C., then we mitigate the emissions on that side."
Had the energy plan called for continued reliance on market purchases, B.C. Hydro could have looked at implementing green targets for imported electricity as well as for domestic generation, she added. But with a mandate to generate all its electricity within provincial borders by 2016, the focus is on home-grown generation.
B.C.'s transition from electricity exporter to net importer can be chalked up to several factors, including growing domestic demand and a generation system that's gone more than 20 years without sizable new additions. With its new energy plan, the province aims to return to self-sufficiency through a mix of conservation and new, clean generation.
Simon Fraser University professor and energy expert Mark Jaccard said he's "not confident" about the province's ability to hit ambitious conservation targets.
"Independent experts are increasingly coming to recognize that energy efficiency is a lot more difficult to achieve than it appears," Prof. Jaccard said in an e-mailed response to questions. "You need strong regulations and price signals. Hindsight shows that the information and subsidy programs we have relied upon throughout North America for the past 30 years have not been as effective as we thought."
B.C. can be an importer and still build a cleaner electricity profile, Prof. Jaccard said. California and other jurisdictions are shopping for emissions-free electricity. B.C. should do the same, and apply its 90-per-cent clean electricity target -- the standard for domestic generation -- to any imports.
Better financial incentives -- including higher electricity rates for residential and industrial users -- may be required to encourage conservation, Prof. Dowlatabadi said. And those higher rates should be introduced sooner rather than later, he argues, something that could require a new approach by regulators that would allow utilities such as B.C. Hydro to use higher prices to force the issue.
"Having higher rates after we have new dams and coal-power plants would have already damaged the environment," Prof. Dowlatabadi said. "Historically, electricity utilities have been selling a commodity. I see a future where they will be promoting the most efficient way to derive services from electricity."
A darker shade of green
British Columbia's bountiful hydro-electric power generates few greenhouse gas emissions, but the province's imports of electricity from Alberta and the U.S. have been on the rise.
Much of that imported energy comes from relatively dirty power plants, sending B.C.'s share of greenhouse-gas emissions soaring, according to calculations by the Suzuki Foundation.
Emissions from power imported from Alberta and U.S.
B. C. Hydro emissions Total
2002 1,087 950 2,037
2003 1,766 917 2,683
2004 1,984 1,685 3,669
2005 2,036 1,223 3,259
SOURCE: B.C. HYDRO, SUZUKI FOUNDATION
Globe and Mail's Climate for Change series
1. Can B.C. make U-turn to green?, 26-Mar-2007
B.C.'s uncharted path to a green future. Plus, one Vancouver family goes on a carbon diet to slim its greenhouse-gas emissions, Part 1.
1a. The Globe's Mark Hume on the greening of British Columbia, 26-Mar-2007
Mr. Hume was online Monday to answer questions on his provocative question: Can B.C. make a U-turn to green?
2. The dirty little secret of importing power, 27-Mar-2007
B.C. is a province of green power -- or is it? Plus, the limits to alternative energy and conservation.
3. How urban sprawl goes against the green, 28-Mar-2007
The battle to cut B.C.'s greenhouse gases will be fought on the lawns of suburbia. Plus, economics powers a green revolution in Vancouver's taxi industry.
4. From carbon steam to cash flow, 29-Mar-2007
How B.C. businesses could turn their pollution into profit. Plus, the province's dirtiest dozen.
5. A greener getaway takes root, 30-Mar-2007
The path to green: How B.C. can slash greenhouse gases. Plus, Part 2 of the carbon diet.
Posted by Arthur Caldicott on 27 Mar 2007