Power company says it's halting energy storage plan after backlash, death threat

A Toronto-based power corporation says it's halting its proposal for an eastern Ontario energy storage facility after facing intense local pushback — including someone uttering a death threat during an open house.

The mayor of Elizabethtown-Kitley said while police were called to the meeting — and he regrets how it went down —  Baseload Power ultimately failed to gain traction because it did not consult widely or early enough.

"Don't leave it until the last minute," said Mayor Brant Burrow of how the company handled its pitch.

In recent weeks, several Ontario communities have been asked to lend their support to renewable energy projects.

It comes as the Independent Electricity Systems Operator (IESO), which manages the province's energy needs, is soliciting pitches from companies on how to help shoulder Ontario's growing power demands.

These kinds of systems boost capacity of the hydro network, storing energy generated at off-peak times to be used when demand is higher.

Baseload Power proposed to build an eight to 10 hectare lithium-ion battery energy storage system with a maximum generating capacity of 300 megawatts in a rural northern part of Elizabethtown-Kitley, a township bordering Brockville whose southern boundary is more than 100 kilometres south of Ottawa's core.

The IESO is seeking to add a total of 4,000 megawatts to the grid.

The mayor said the facility would have been close to some multigenerational farms. According to Burrow, locals had safety concerns, felt the process was rushed and that Baseload Power wasn't providing adequate information.

Things came to a head during a Nov. 2 public meeting hosted by the company.

'We don't want you in our township'

Jonathan Sandler, the company's president, told CBC that as soon as he opened his mouth at that meeting, someone interrupted and "basically said, 'Get the eff out of here. We don't want you in our township.'"

The company never got through its full presentation due to screaming, cursing and other behaviour that was "way beyond reasonable," Sandler said.

Early in the meeting, Burrow said he heard one disruptive person utter, "Someone better call the feds 'cause someone is going to die here."

Out of caution, Burrow and the township phoned the OPP.  While the meeting continued to be "rambunctious" — prompting Burrow to address the crowd himself — things calmed down by the time officers arrived, he said. 

The company left pre-stamped feedback forms at the open house. To date, Sandler said, it has only received two back.

"One said to 'f--k off.' And the other was received after we decided to not proceed with the project," Sandler said. 

Pulled out of 'this whole mess'

Baseload Power was then asked to speak during a Nov. 28 council meeting. 

The company did not go, saying in a letter to councillors on Nov. 23 it needed more time to "go through the sharing of information and education process that is very much necessary."

The project's development would continue, the letter said, while community engagement — including providing reports from experts in the battery energy storage industry — would resume early in 2024.

Sandler told CBC, however, that the company had by then already decided to put the brakes on the project.

"We came to the decision that, given the results of the open house … we were pulling ourselves out of this whole mess," Sandler said.

"The fact that supporters of the project were afraid to come forward to voice their position left us with very little to no hope that council would have the ability to provide their support for the project," he later told CBC via email. 

No one spoke in favour of the project during the council meeting. Out of more than two dozen resident letters appended to the agenda, only one expressed support. 

"It makes sense that a site should be located in our area to [ensure] a steady supply of energy going into the future," the approving couple wrote. 

Councillors ultimately voted to ban battery energy storage systems for the duration of their term. Sandler said they did that without hearing from experts.

'Late-in-the-game approach' a factor, mayor says

Burrow said Baseload Power's "late-in-the-game" consultation process did not leave the community and council enough time to fully consider the project and retain experts of their own.

The company was working under a Dec. 12 deadline to file with the IESO. While Burrow and Sandler agree Baseload Power first reached out to the township in September, Burrow said the company should have gotten the ball rolling earlier. 

He added that beyond increased taxation and a community development fund, the company provided few other specifics about the project's economic benefits.

Sandler said Baseload Power shared information and notices with the township and councillors well in advance of the Nov. 2 open house, where it did not get a chance to talk in detail about the project's benefits.

Not every councillor was at the open house, he added.

The company also notified all residents living within one kilometre from the proposed site about the open house and launched a website.

The concerns about safety incidents referred to outdated technology that Sandler said the company did not plan to use. 

Sandler said Baseload Power was never given a fair shot and that council's decision set a bad precedent. 

"If you scream the loudest, then you get to make the decisions."