MINTO – Town council will extend support to a company planning to redevelop an energy storage facility in the Harriston Industrial Park.
On Dec. 5, Minto council voted to provide a resolution of municipal support for an application by Toronto-based Nexus Renewables to turn NRStor’s Harriston energy storage facility into a battery energy storage system (BESS).
A staff report from the town’s economic development department explains Minto sold land to NRStor in 2013 and in 2014 for a two-megawatt flywheel operation.
This project was the first grid-connected commercial flywheel facility in Canada and provided regulation service to Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO).
In December 2022, representatives from NRStor advised council the contract with IESO for the flywheel facility was set to expire in early 2023.
At the time NRStor was proposing to redevelop the Minto Energy Storage site to incorporate a new battery energy storage project that would provide the longer-duration energy storage services IESO is currently seeking.
At that time council provided a resolution of support for the company’s application to the IESO’s RFP process.
However, in January of this year, NRStor Inc. informed staff that they were holding off on applying to the first procurement round and were going to prepare to apply in the fall.
In October staff were contacted by Nexus Renewables advising they were in discussions with NRStor about acquiring the company’s site in the Harriston Industrial Park and were planning to submit an application for a 10-megawatt battery energy storage facility.
Officials from Nexus Renewables delegated to council on Nov. 21 requesting municipal support and council requested a staff report be prepared.
The report notes the town’s building and planning departments have no objections to the proposed battery storage facility, but it points out:
- a building permit is required for the battery storage structures planned;
- development charges, if applicable, are due at the time the permits are issued;
- site plan approval may be required prior to the issuance of permits; and
- buffering will be required along the frontages of Hutchison and John Streets.
The report indicates Minto Fire has concerns about the proposal.
Fire department officials stated that “on the rare occasion a battery or rack of batteries catches fire,” there is no current method to extinguish lithium-ion battery fires.
“Our goal would be to flow water on surrounding units to keep them cool while the unit under fire burns itself out. It is unknown how long this would take and how much water would be needed to conduct these operations,” the report states.
“Further examination of our water supply and needs for fire protection would be recommended.”
The economic development department stated Nexus officials advised that no employment is anticipated at the site, as is currently the case with the flywheel facility.
“Representatives noted that they do like to sub-contract with local companies during construction and ongoing maintenance of the facility,” the report states.
Mayor Dave Turton asked why Nexus would not continue to operate the flywheel system, which is slated to be removed under the proposal, and add the battery storage units around the existing building.
“The flywheel facility’s contract is done. And I believe they were doing some research around the future of the flywheels and I’m guessing … that there is no future here for that as the province is moving towards the battery storage,” explained Minto’s director of economic and community development Belinda Wick-Graham.
She added NRStor will be involved with the bid process and build-out of the new facilities, “then we’ll look to transition the property and the project to Nexus Renewables.”
Council passed a motion to receive the report and provide a municipal support resolution to Nexus for the proposed battery energy storage system.
