A consultation with the Government of Quebec is scheduled for May 15 on “the supervision and development of clean energies in Quebec”. This comes at the right time, since it will allow us to take a step back from the development of our electricity in the context of the energy transition. This is a necessary step in order to properly draw the roadmap that will mark out its use.
With the adoption of flagship measures in favor of the climate in the United States (Inflation Reduction Act), in Europe (REPower EU) and the adoption of the last Canadian federal budget, which provides some 80 billion for the development of low-carbon energies, the he challenge of the energy transition is now well anchored in the agenda of public decision-makers.
On the citizen side, with the breakdowns experienced here during the recent episode of ice storm, as well as in the United States at the end of 2022, particularly in New Jersey, more and more people are becoming aware of the importance of a network of robust electricity, able to withstand the vagaries of the climate.
This robustness of the electricity grid has indeed become imperative, as our dependence on electricity is growing.
More and more human activities (transport, industry, digital, etc.) rely on an electricity supply.
The energy transition is in fact a transition to clean electricity, coupled with a more efficient use of it than before, which should lead us to consume less of it for the same level of comfort or productivity.
A complex mission
If, before, the main task of electricity companies was to ensure a reliable supply at the best cost, their mission is now more complex with the transition and climate change.
They must now ensure a reliable supply, of course, but also: cope with a significant increase in demand to decarbonize the economy, after years of weak growth; meet this demand with energies that do not emit greenhouse gases, and; build modern production, transport and distribution infrastructures that are better able to withstand extreme climatic events.
They also need to develop a network by relying more on digital technologies, thus facilitating more direct, and therefore two-way, participation by customers, in addition to integrating decentralized resources. The microgrid tested in Lac-Mégantic since 2021 is a good example of this: it allows autonomous operation, including in the event of network outages, and therefore more resilience.
These are very heavy mandates.
For many regions, those without hydroelectricity or nuclear power, decarbonizing essentially means implementing large-scale wind and solar farms. These are renewable energies, at competitive costs for 10 years, but intermittent. They cannot be activated at all times. They therefore make a less reliable contribution during periods of peak consumption.
However, this energy to be supplied during peak periods is expensive, hence the importance of developing demand management strategies aimed at smoothing the consumption curve.
Remember that Hydro-Québec experienced a record peak this year, at the beginning of February, reaching more than 42,000 megawatts.
In terms of storage, pumped storage hydropower plants are increasingly seen globally as a long-life solution.
But that’s not all for electricians. This clean energy has to be transported and, here again, the approval times for lines have lengthened considerably in recent years, all over the world.
In a context where more lines will be needed to carry the clean electricity required by the transition and more exchanges between different territories, this question has become rock in the shoes of electricians.
In the United States, the federal government makes it a priority. It is currently in talks with its various agencies to speed up the process of obtaining line construction permits. The key word in Washington: speed. The objective is indeed to shorten lead times, without losing sight of environmental requirements and social acceptability.
Let’s hope that the consultation in Quebec will make it possible to calmly discuss these issues, and many others, to generate a better collective understanding of the challenges of this transition, which has become the great challenge of our time.