'May the best bid win': Hydro CEO can see hydrogen wind farms as part of future plans

Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro president Jennifer Williams can see a future where wind farms operated by green hydrogen companies are part of the province's electricity expansion.

Williams has previously said the province will need to double the size of its grid by 2050 to accommodate growing demand for electricity. The utility giant has said it will explore all available options, with considerations like cost and environmental sustainability at the forefront.

Speaking to Radio-Canada on Wednesday, Williams said working with hydrogen wind farms makes sense for their future plans.

"I could envision us within the next 10 years looking for another source of energy," she said. "And if there is a proponent in the province, a private proponent who has excess energy to sell, I could see us doing [a request for proposals] and may the best bid win."

World Energy GH2 and Everwind Fuels have both expressed interest in selling power to Hydro. In the case of World Energy GH2, the company's chairman said he expects they'll have one gigawatt — more than the full capacity of Muskrat Falls.— of excess wind energy in the winter.

Cost will be pertinent for Hydro, given the $13.4-billion price tag hanging over taxpayers for the Muskrat Falls megaproject. With multiple companies interested in selling to the grid, Williams said an RFP can help get to the lowest cost possible.

"That's the way it should be. That's the way that customers would expect, and that's the way we'll get the best price," she said.

'Wind will definitely be a part of our future'

Williams said none of the companies are engaged in active conversations right now about buying and selling power, but Hydro is working with some of them to make sure they have all the information they need before those discussions take place.

World Energy GH2 is poised to be the first company to launch itself into the emerging green hydrogen market, if it clears the province's environmental assessment. It's the only company that has publicly talked about needing power from the grid — and a lot of it. The company's environmental impact statement said it will need about 20 per cent of the electricity produced by Muskrat Falls to power the project at times when the wind isn't blowing.

Wind farms could become a common sight throughout Newfoundland, with multiple companies bidding for wind-to-hydrogen projects across the island. (David Moir/Reuters)

Williams said they're not the only company interested in connecting to the grid.

"We have been very clear, publicly, that the amount of firm power available is minimal and we have to make sure we protect the rest of [our] customers and the system from these very big projects and integrations," she said. "So we're going to be very thoughtful in our assessments and we'll do all of this in front of the regulator as well."

Whether it's hydrogen companies or others, Williams said, wind will be part of Hydro's future plans.

"We are going to need good energy sources in the future, and wind has proven to be a great energy source in a number of other jurisdictions. Here as well, even though it's a very small amount. Wind will definitely be a part of our future."

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