When British Columbia’s NDP Government approved continuation of Site C, it was partly based on the myth that dispatchability of hydro power was an overriding consideration. Marc Jaccard, the principal of industry consultants M.K. Jaccard and Associates, wrote in the Vancouver Sun:

…non-dispatchable sources may produce nothing. This is akin to ambulances and fire trucks that respond to emergency dispatch calls only if enough paramedics and firefighters happened to show up for work.

…dispatchable electricity sources can be 10 times or more the value per kilowatthour generated of non-dispatchable sources. In other words, comments that wind and solar are getting cheaper than Site C because their costs are falling are nonsensical.

Jaccard’s Site C support was disputed by people favouring less harmful power generation, but it was well received by the NDP Government and those who expected to line their pockets as the megaproject proceeded. However, the SFU professor’s sincerity can be questioned since in 2021 he countered his own arguments by writing:

Fortunately, Canada’s geography provides favourable opportunities to develop wind and solar throughout the country, as well as region-specific biomass, small hydro and some geothermal. And while the electricity output of solar, wind and small hydro plants is variable (hence non-dispatchable), these sources can be integrated with energy storage as well as with incentives to adjust the timing of electricity demand (load shifting).

Jaccard added that non-dispatchable generators benefit from the enormous energy storage of existing hydropower reservoirs, such as those controlled by BC Hydro now and in 2017.

Arguments claiming impracticability of wind and solar power integration in British Columbia never passed scrutiny. Elsewhere in the world, it has been happening rapidly. The International Energy Agency reported:

The World Bank reported on offshore wind power installations in emerging nations:

National Grid ESO is the electricity system operator for Great Britain. In June 2021, the company reported:

 In 2019 zero carbon sources outstripped fossil fuelled electricity generation for the first time ever and 1.30pm on 17 August of that year saw the highest share of zero carbon power ever seen at 85.1% (wind 39%, solar 25%, nuclear 20% and hydro 1%).

Wednesday 12 February 2020 saw the highest ever output from zero carbon generators. . .

The growth in renewable sources of power, with record levels of wind and solar, means there will be enough zero carbon generation to meet demand. A key challenge is ensuring the electricity system is ready to accommodate that power. . .

Opponents of Site C have never been against using electricity to meet British Columbia’s energy needs. Instead, we have called for generating power in the least risky and damaging ways, and with the lowest possible financial, environmental, and cultural costs. BC Hydro has not prioritized those goals during the past decade. Instead, it has been a company with leadership focused on self-interest and corporate rewards.

The Site C budget almost doubled in 2021 and, like the Trans Mountain Pipeline, the final cost will land far higher. Not including environmental damage, electricity will cost somewhere in the range of $140 to $180 per MHh, even more than purchases from independent power producers, which averaged $100 per MWh in BC Hydro’s last quarterly report. (Unfortunately, the BC government promises to sell electricity to fossil fuel processors for a fraction of the utility’s marginal cost of power.)

Days ago, BC NDP announced a new call for clean power. No important details were provided but it is looking like government wants to replicate the insider-friendly private power program favoured by BC Liberals. That resulted in commitments for power that lasted as long as 70 years, at prices that are multiples of market value.

The province should not go that way again.

State owned Électricité de France S.A., commonly known as EDF, was recently selected to build an offshore wind farm project in Normandy. Electricity will cost less than EUR 45 (C$65) per MWh.

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory reported on U.S. prices for wind power:

The average levelized cost of wind energy was $32/MWh for plants built in 2021. Levelized costs vary across time and geography, but the national average stood at $32/MWh in 2021 – down substantially historically, though consistent with the previous three years. (Cost estimates do not count the effect of federal tax incentives for wind.)

If the cost of new renewable power is above these costs, we will know that British Columbia’s government has again placed private interests above public welfare.