Ottawa council votes to support new battery facility

A map posted on the website of Evolugen shows the location of the proposed South March Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) at 2555 and 2625 Marchurst Rd. near Dubrobin. Photo by EVOLUGEN /HANDOUTArticle content

Ottawa city councillors voted to support a controversial battery energy storage system (BESS) facility in West Carleton despite the objections of rural councillors and residents who voiced their concerns as the proposal was initially rejected at a marathon 10-hour committee meeting last week.

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More than 60 speakers lined up to speak at the agriculture and rural affairs committee meeting at Ben Franklin Place on June 5, with most in opposition to the proposed six-hectare facility on Marchurst Road in Dunrobin.

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Proponents of the $650-million project say BESS facilities, which use lithium iron phosphate batteries to store electricity during off-peak periods and release it during peak-demand hours, are needed as Ontario grapples with increasing demand for energy.

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Opponents who spoke out at the committee cited environmental concerns, the potential for seepage into the water table and the possibility of fire.

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The province’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) awarded contracts to two BESS projects in Ottawa in May 2024: one on William McEwen Drive in the Rideau-Jockvale ward and another proposed site near Fitzroy Harbour.

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The Fitzroy Harbour proposal was rejected by council and was moved 13 kilometres away to Marchurst Road.

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Brookfield Renewable Power Inc., through Evolugen, a Gatineau-based company, sought council’s approval of a Municipal Support Resolution (MSR), an instrument introduced by the Ontario government to gauge a municipality’s interest in building new energy projects.

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The rural affairs committee rejected the Marchurst Road proposal at its June 5 meeting, but council voted 20-3 in favour of moving forward with the MSR at the June 11 city council session. Rural councillors voted against the proposal, with Rideau-Jock Coun. David Brown, West Carleton-March Coun. Clarke Kelly and Barrhaven East Coun. Wilson Lo dissenting.

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According to a June 4 memo to council from the city’s strategic initiatives department, the MSR “is not a planning approval and does not commit council to any future land use decisions.”

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“Council is being asked at this time to provide evidence of municipal support for a project that has been identified as a provincial energy priority,” strategic initiatives general manager Debbie Stewart said in the memo.

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“While preliminary environmental screening has not identified immediate constraints, critical technical studies, detailed site layout information, and emergency services input would be forthcoming as part of the planning approval process for this project.”