Quebec and Ontario have signed a $1-billion annual hydroelectricity deal.
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Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne and Quebec’s Philippe Couillard met Thursday for the official signing ceremony for the agreement, which was announced in October.
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The deal allows Ontario to import up to two terawatt hours of electricity annually over seven years from Quebec – or enough energy to power a city of roughly 200,000 people.
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Wynne said Ontario will save $70 million over the life of the deal versus previous energy cost forecasts and that the province’s annual greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced by about one million tonnes a year.
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Couillard said the agreement serves as a model for future deals between Quebec and other provinces.
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Ontario is also scheduled to join Quebec and California’s cap-and-trade carbon market in January.