Renewable energy in Ontario continues to rise, between 2005-2017 the state phased out coal plants and replaced them with solar, hydro, and wind projects. By doing so, the state was able to reduce greenhouse gas pollution arising from its electricity system by 93%. Hydro is estimated to be the largest producer of renewable energy in the state ahead of wind, solar, and biomass. However, it is clear further investors in the sector are required as reported in October 2022, the state re-opened four gas-fired power plants in order to tackle the ongoing electricity crisis. In this article, we will discuss three green energy infrastructure investors based in Ontario that are drivers behind the green energy transition in the state.
1) Northland Power Inc (Toronto, Canada)
Northland Power was founded in 1987 as one of the first Canadian independent power producers and has become a specialist in developing, owning, and operating green infrastructure projects. The Toronto-based firm owns or has a stake in 3GW of operating assets and has a pipeline of 20GW of energy projects. Northland has developed a wide-ranging portfolio of assets including investments in solar, hydrogen, and wind projects. One of the investments includes a partnership with RWE to develop four offshore wind projects in the German North Sea which have a combined installed capacity of 1600MW.
2) CC & L Infrastructure (Toronto, Canada)
Connor, Clark & Lunn Infrastructure is a Toronto-based firm that seeks mid-market infrastructure assets such as traditional ventures (roads, bridges, schools) and energy infrastructure (power, renewable energy, and electricity transmission). Currently, the group has over $5bn of assets under management and 1.5GW of clean energy assets across 90 projects including solar, hydro, wind, and hydrogen assets.
3) Skyline Clean Energy (Guelph, Canada)
Skyline Clean Energy manages the Skyline Clean Energy Fund (SCEF) which is a privately managed investment fund that exclusively targets green energy infrastructure assets. The fund is listed as an alternative investment and identifies large-scale solar projects as well as negotiating power purchase agreements. The Guelph-based firm targets projects which provide returns via a long-term feed-in-tariff contract or power purchase agreements in order to attain stabilized and reliable projects.
Image Source: Made From The Sky (19.04.2023)
