CanWEA Pleased with the Ontario Government's Commitment to Accelerate the Procurement of New Wind Energy Projects under the Feed-in-Tariff (FIT) Program

Regular Review of Wind Energy Pricing Important to Ensure Industry Diversity

OTTAWA, March 22, 2012 /CNW/ - The Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) is pleased that the Ontario Government's review of the Feed-in-Tariff (FIT) program has made a commitment to procure all the energy required to meet its aggressive renewable energy targets by 2015 and to examine in 2013 the potential for additional renewable energy procurements. Coupled with the Ontario Government's strong commitment to continue with the FIT program, this provides the stable policy framework investors need and ensures that Ontario will continue to be a leading destination for wind energy project and manufacturing investment in North America - bringing jobs and economic benefits to communities across Ontario.

Wind energy is a cost-competitive source of energy for Ontario. A new price of 11.5 cents per kWh for wind energy has been established as part of the FIT review process. "We believe that this new price will prove extremely challenging for many projects and could prevent a number of them from proceeding. This is particularly true for smaller projects and new entrants to the industry, reducing the number of communities and the diversity of players able to contribute to and benefit from the government's ambitious objectives," says Robert Hornung, President of CanWEA. "Our industry will work to meet this challenge, and we look forward to participating in future discussions on FIT pricing scheduled for the end of 2012 with a view to facilitating broad participation by organizations and communities seeking to support investments in clean energy and green jobs in Ontario."

The Ontario Government has made an important commitment to improve the efficiency of the Renewable Energy Approvals process and CanWEA is looking forward to understanding the full details and working with the Ontario Government to facilitate implementation. New initiatives to facilitate greater municipal and community engagement in wind energy development are also welcomed by CanWEA and are consistent with our mandate to support the responsible and sustainable development of wind energy. The foundation of this approach can be found in our Best Practices for Community Engagement and Public Consultation - which were informed through discussions with dozens of municipal leaders.

"We are pleased that the FIT review is now complete and are confident that the wind energy industry will build on its successes to date and deliver more green jobs and clean, affordable power for Ontario," said Hornung.

About CanWEA
CanWEA is the voice of Canada's wind energy industry, actively promoting the responsible and sustainable growth of wind energy on behalf of its more than 420 members. A national non-profit association, CanWEA serves as Canada's leading source of credible information about wind energy and its social, economic and environmental benefits. To join other global leaders in the wind energy industry, CanWEA believes Canada can and must reach its target of producing 20 per cent or more of the country's electricity from wind by 2025. The document Wind Vision 2025 - Powering Canada's Future is available at www.canwea.ca.

Ulrike Kucera
Media Relations
Canadian Wind Energy Association
613-234-8716 ext: 228
Mobile [phone]

Lejla Latifovic
Communications Co-ordinator
Canadian Wind Energy Association
Office: 613-234-8716 ext: 241
Mobile: [phone]