The Ontario government is advancing pre-development work for the proposed Ontario Pumped Storage Project, developed in partnership with TC Energy (TCE) and the Saugeen Ojibway Nation. The project, which would be the largest of its kind in Canada, would provide up to 1,000 megawatts of electricity storage.
“With electricity demand set to increase by 75% by 2050, our government is advancing an all-of-the-above approach to energy affordability and energy security,” said Stephen Lecce, Minister of Energy and Electrification. “The Ontario Pumped Storage Project has the potential to store and deliver clean, affordable energy for decades, representing Canada’s largest clean energy storage project. This project can only proceed following this work and the successful approval of Bruce’s expansion plans, as this storage is a critical part our larger energy build-out. I look forward to working with the Saugeen Ojibway Nation, local municipal leaders, and TC Energy to explore the next step to meet soaring electricity demand.”
The facility – in the Municipality of Meaford – would function by pumping water from Georgian Bay up to a reservoir during periods of low electricity demand and releasing the water back into Georgian Bay to generate electricity during periods of high demand.
Canada’s only other pumped storage facility is Ontario Power Generation’s Sir Adam Beck Pump Generating Station. This 174-megawatt facility pumps water from the Niagara River into a 300-hectare reservoir for energy storage.
The province is investing up to $285 million to advance this work which includes the completion of a cost estimate and environmental assessments to determine the feasibility of the proposed project. The province will make a final decision on the project once a detailed cost estimate is complete, ensuring the project is built only when it is in the best interest of Ontario ratepayers.
The proposed project would also complement the government’s recent competitive procurement of battery storage, the largest in the country’s history. While batteries can provide quick-response solutions to manage short-term increases in electricity demand, pumped storage offers large-scale, long-duration storage capacity to balance the grid during extended periods of increased use.
According to the Canadian Centre for Economic Analysis, a potential pumped storage project in Meaford would contribute $6.2 billion to Ontario’s GDP over an estimated 50-year project life, which includes design, construction, and operation. The project’s economic impact would primarily benefit rural communities in Ontario, which would see about 60% of the supported economic activity. The project would support more than 1,700 construction jobs during the four-year construction period.
TCE is proposing the project in partnership with the Saugeen Ojibway Nation. If constructed, the Saugeen Ojibway Nation would have the opportunity to enter into an equity partnership with TCE.
“Ontario has one of the cleanest electricity systems in the world,” said Andrea Khanjin, Minister of the Environment, Conservation, and Parks. “Supporting the development of clean energy solutions is one of the many ways our government is building strong, resilient communities for generations to come.”
