Loyalist Township council decided against supporting the development, construction and operation of a long-term reliability project within the township on Monday.

The project is part of the Independent Electricity System Authority's (IESO) current long-term competitive procurement process to help address Ontario's future electricity needs.

According to staff's report, there are four proposed electricity storage projects in the township and requests from proponents to receive a municipal support confirmation for their project. All other applicable permitting and regulatory requirements from the township, provincial ministries and agencies would apply to these projects if they are successful in obtaining a contract with the IESO. A proposed blanket council support resolution was recommended to support these projects without specifically endorsing any particular project or location. Council, however, passed a motion to receive the report and take no further action.

Proposals are due to be submitted to the IESO by Dec. 12. Without council's support, they will not receive full points for their application, but will still be eligible.

Three projects are for battery energy storage facilities and one is for an expansion to the Kingston Co-Gen generating station. Primary concerns raised across the province have been related to noise generation, fire hazards and leakage. According to staff's report, the township's fire chief, Fred Stephenson, noted that an emergency response plan, annual inspection and training for firefighters would be required.

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