Ontario’s Feed-in Tariff: So Far, So Good

When meeting your prospective in-laws, they say, stay off politics and religion.  And if you’re in the renewable energy game, add feed-in-tariffs to that list.  The payment scheme popularized in Germany, Spain, Italy and a growing number of countries has fierce proponents who point to the unprecedented number of solar power installations it has caused to be deployed;  it also has detractors who consider it the most expensive way imaginable of growing the solar market.

Ontario launched its feed-in tariff a year ago, and in this Toronto Star article, Tyler Hamilton describes it as a success, while expressing reservations about how large such a scheme could become without overburdening the grid or the public’s purse.

For those interested in following this argument in depth, you can also check out Paul Gipe’s Wind-Works site.