Blake Ellis/The Independent

If at first you don’t succeed, try again.

That’s just what a developer of a batery energy storage facility did after the company’s first project was rejected by Enniskillen Township council in February 2023. And it could mean up to $3 million in new revenue for the municipal government.

This time the recycled project is being called the Inwood Energy Storage Project, due to its proximity to Inwood. Located at 5930 Courtright Line, a battery energy storage system is proposed to be built on just under 20-acres of prime agriculture land. 

It’s link to the first Oil City proposal was revealed at Monday’s Enniskillen Township meeting when Deputy Mayor Judy Krall asked why the proposed site was near Inwood. 

A delegation led by Rishabh Mundhra and Nate Van Geest for RES, appeared before council giving a presentation about its plans to develop its new proposal. They said the company just went back to the drawing table, found a new location further down the power line. 

The lithium-ion battery energy storage system is proposed to have a capacity of up to 240 megawatts and will be connected to the Hydro One transmission corridor at the north of the property.

The company needs to have council’s approval before moving ahead. The company hopes to have that decision by Dec. 1.  

A public open house is scheduled for Nov. 4 at the Oil Springs Youth Centre.  

An agricultural impact assessment will also need to conducted to the satisfaction of the municipality. It’s a new provincial requirement for energy projects.

Construction, said Mundhra, will likely be between 2028 and 2030 and will take a year to complete.  

RES is proposing to establish a fund, which will be administered by Enniskillen Township, which will include a one time payment of $2,000 per megawatt, a total of $480,000, when the battery energy storage system is in operation, as well as an annual payment of $500 per megawatt  – or $120,000 per year – beginning in the second year. It is believed that the facility will be in place for 20 years. The agreement would mean about $3 million in new revenue for the township.

RES has also promised to enter into a cost recovery agreement with the township so taxpayers will not shoulder the cost of road use or upgrades with the project. A traffic management plan will also be instituted. 

An emergency response plan will also be developed. The company will absorb any ‘reasonable’ first responder and fire service costs.  

RES staff has already presented its proposed project to fire chiefs at Petrolia-North Enniskillen, Oil Springs and South Enniskillen, Dawn-Euphemia and Brooke-Alvinston fire departments, Mundhra said. 

The project will be mandated to decommission the site by 2050. The company will be establishing a decommissioning fund and all equipment will be removed at the end of the project’s life. 

RES has a 40 year history of developing energy projects in 24 countries. 

It’s been in Canada 20 years including building Ontario’s first battery energy storage system in Strathroy in 2024.