Ontario Agriculture

The network for agriculture in Ontario, Canada

solar panels

Is anyone concerned with this solar excitement.

 

Current prices are about 5.6 to 8 cent per KWH. The government is paying people with solar panels ect 80 cents per KWH. This seems really excessive.

 

Does this make sense? Can we expect hydro to jump that much. Why is our government taking taxes from the masses and giving it to the few? I understand the whole global warming talk and utilizing green power. Does it come down to deregulation of generators now everyone can do it instead of the people owing the generation. I am not sure this is sustainable.

 

What does everyone think of solar?

Views: 287

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Go Solar Canada on July 7, 2010 at 10:30am
If Pythagoras (cira 600BC) developed nuclear energy, we would still be watching over his waste today. Is that the legacy you want to leave.

For those that think $5 a year per family in Ontario is a lot of money maybe they should look at the debt retirement charge on your Hydro bill. This is the cost of going nuclear, How about 5 bucks a month. 60% of my bill was distribution charges, this is so high because of the great losses in bringing the energy from the power plant to your home. It costs the hydro company nothing to bring the power off of my roof or out of my back yard and into my house. The power you use is already subsidized. These subsidies go towards fat paychecks for the people who run the industry and are used to wine and dine the people who are behind the decisions to make sure great programs like the microFIT do not work, it keeps their checks fat. Why pay 10 microFITs a million dollars over 20 years when you can use that money for part of one persons bonuses for a year. Why use clean energy when we can spend billions on storing our nuclear waste. There is nothing wrong with our current technologies as long as we leave the cost of cleaning up after their use to our children. (Smog, tar sands, nuclear waste, They say if a natural gas plant blows up it will take a few blocks with it. Remember they said three mile island couldn't happen. Maybe to save money we can design a couple more reactors just like the Maple reactors that cost us millions and have been shelved by the Harper government.
Just in the almost four months my small 8 module microFIT has been running, My generation has saved 1142 lbs of carbon going into the air. How much would it cost you to remove that carbon out of the air once it has been put there by a coal plant or oil field.

Dan
Permalink Reply by Dale Ketcheson on July 7, 2010 at 3:16pm
I think anybody who thinks this current or some future Ontario government won't find a way to break these "contracts" and dramatically reduce the prices they're paying hasn't been paying attention to the way governments have been operating for the past... um... decades?

I wish people luck but my bet is that within the first 6 or 7 years of the plan, a whole lot of people will be bankrupted or severely hurt financially and a lot of panels will be on the market at firesale prices.
Permalink Reply by Wayne Black on July 8, 2010 at 2:18am
I guess the way I look at it, when on July 7, 2010 at about 11 AM Ontario Energy costs were 28 cents/kWh, I would rather the 58 or 80 cents go to Ontario residents rather than MB, QB, or US businesses. Current prices that the consumer pays is only 5 to 8 cents but demand pricing pushes that over $1/kWh at times (summer of 2008). On average the price is only 2 to 5 cents to buy but the peaks are what costs big money. For more info on demand pricing visit: http://ieso.ca
Permalink Reply by Peter Gredig on July 8, 2010 at 7:15am
Can anyone show me some solar installations that have been productive and running for 20 years? I don't have a problem with whatever the gov't wants to spend to encourage alt energy. I do have a problem investing $100,000 in solar technology that will be out of date in less than two years.
Permalink Reply by Go Solar Canada on July 8, 2010 at 10:57am
Solar is actually a fairly old technology, Einstein won a Nobel in the 1920's for his paper he wrote in the early 1900's, Bell laboratories first sold them in the 50's. There is a system that was installed in 1986 and still running. You can see it and learn more about it if you visit the Kortright Center west of the 400 just off Rutherford.
Permalink Reply by Roadrunner on July 9, 2010 at 3:33pm
Looks like the price drop is slowing down everyone who was looking at putting a solar system on their farm....I think solar could have a place but I want to business to be sound and not too expensive for consumers...

▶ Reply to Discussion

RSS

Agriculture Headlines from Farms.com Canada East News - click on title for full story

Producers learn new ways to optimize harvest at EMILI’s annual Producer Day

Producers only get one chance at harvest, and to get the most possible yield from their crop their combine needs to be calibrated just right. This is what brought close to 50 producers, from across Manitoba and as far as Quebec, to EMILI’s Innovation Farms powered by AgExpert on June 11, 2025 for EMILI’s Producer Day with Bushel Plus Harvest Academy. Attendees learned more about their machines and how to calibrate various combines to reduce yield loss during harvest. The day was jam-packed with information and featured a mix of classroom-style learning that took place inside the shop at Innovation Farms centre, and demonstrations on Claas, Case IH and John Deere combines, with plenty of opportunities for interactive, hands-on instruction with experts from Bushel Plus. Marcel Kringe, founder and CEO of Bushel Plus, and Tyson Sanderson, product specialist at Bushel Plus, walked attendees through the inner workings of several parts of the combine, including the header, threshing system

Rapid Crop Emergence Offsets Slow Moisture Rebound

Alberta’s 2025 crop is off to a flying start, with emergence and early development well ahead of schedule across the province — but dwindling moisture reserves are starting to cast a shadow. According to the latest crop report, emergence for major crops has reached 95%, outpacing both the five-year (84%) and ten-year (86%) averages. Spring wheat and dry peas are nearly fully emerged (100%), while barley (96%), canola (89%), and oats (85%) are all well ahead of seasonal norms. Crops aren’t just emerging fast — they’re developing faster than usual, too. Spring wheat and barley have already entered mid-tillering stages, when early tillering is more typical for this time of year. Oats are showing late-stage leaf development, again a jump ahead of the five- and ten-year benchmarks. Dry Conditions Raising Red Flags Despite the impressive start, soil moisture is not keeping pace, especially in deeper layers now crucial for sustaining the crop’s rapid development. Provincial surface moistur

Montana Spring Wheat Rating Still in Decline

The US spring wheat crop has rebounded from its second worst start to the growing season on record, but things are still going downhill in Montana. Monday’s USDA crop progress report pegged the Montana spring wheat crop at just 16% good to excellent as of Sunday, down from 25% the previous week and now 20 points below the season’s first condition rating on May 26. As shown on the graphic below, it is the worst start for the spring wheat crop in the state since 2022, when an overly wet and late start to the growing season meant only 15% of the Montana crop was rated good to excellent in the first spring wheat condition report on June 12. This year, it is the exact opposite problem for the Montana spring wheat crop, which is struggling amid dryness and drought. According to the latest US drought monitor, more than half of Montana (59%) was being impacted by some form of drought as of June 10, the highest since November 2024. (In 2021, the Montana spring wheat crop started better bu

New University of Manitoba Research Chair Named to Advance Beef Production Sustainability

Thanks to a $1.5 million grant from the Beef Cattle Research Council (BCRC), the University of Manitoba (UM), along with its partners at Manitoba Beef Producers, Manitoba Agriculture, and Manitoba Beef and Forage Initiatives, is proud to announce the establishment of the BCRC Chair in Beef Cattle Economic Sustainability. “It’s important for our industry to understand beneficial management practices that boost productivity, profitability, and environmental sustainability—including those related to greenhouse gas emissions, land and water use, and biodiversity,” said Craig Lehr, BCRC chair and Alberta beef producer. “This new Chair will focus on viable solutions for Canadian beef cattle producers with innovations that improve economic sustainability while reducing environmental footprint.” The beef industry faces mounting challenges, including volatile input costs, climate-related risks, and limited access to equitable risk management tools. These pressures have made it increasingly

It’s Local Food Week!

A week of celebrating fresh, healthy, and local Canadian food is here! Local Food Week is a time to recognize the hardworking farmers who grow the food we enjoy every day. It also encourages us to think about the impact of our choices as consumers.

© 2025   Created by Darren Marsland.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service