6299 County Rd 29
Mississippi Mills, ON K0A 1A0

Almonte Battery Energy Storage System 2

Almonte BESS 2 is a proposed up to 10 Mega-Watt (“MW”) lithium-ion Battery Energy Storage System (“BESS”) that will be located at 6299 County Rd 29, Town of Mississippi Mills, ON, K0A 1A0. The Project will be submitted to the Independent Electricity System Operator’s (“IESO”) Request for Proposals under the Long-Term 1 Procurement. 

It is important to us that Almonte BESS be successfully integrated into the Town of Mississippi Mills and we are seeking to incorporate feedback through Public Community Meetings and this Project Website into the development of this Project.

Provincial Needs

Ontario is entering a period of emerging electricity system needs driven by increasing residential and commercial demand due to the electrification of the automotive sector, growth of the agriculture sector, the retirement of the Pickering nuclear plant, refurbishment of other nuclear-generating plants, and expiring contracts for existing facilities.

In response, the IESO is conducting procurements, including the ongoing Long-Term Request for Proposals (“LT1 RFP”), to secure more than 4,000 MW of capacity in Ontario. Facilities that successfully demonstrate their capabilities will be contracted by mid-2024, with operations starting on or before May 1, 2028.

The Almonte BESS 2 Project, among other electricity storage sites, will help address emerging global and regional electricity needs for the coming decades.

Electricity Storage Explained

When Ontario’s electricity grid needs more power (like on the hottest days of the year), the IESO turns to on-demand resources, like energy storage, to support Provincial electricity needs. Decentralized energy storage infrastructure can prevent emergency grid events such as rolling blackouts, and help defer more capital-intensive system upgrades that directly impact rate-payers. Ideally, BESS sites are located near electricity substations or 3-phase power lines to improve overall efficiencies.

Although energy storage comes in different shapes and sizes, the lithium-ion Battery Energy Storage System (“BESS”) is the fastest emerging technology in North America and is planned to be deployed in the Town of Mississippi Mills with the Almonte BESS 2 Project.

Project History and Description

Almonte BESS 2 is a proposed up to 10 Mega-Watt (“MW”) lithium-ion battery storage Project located at 6064 County Rd 29 S, Town of Mississippi Mills, ON, K0A 1A0, under development by Almonte BESS Limited Partnership. This infrastructure project will bring significant investment and local benefits including employment, lease payments and capital spending in the local economy.

The Almonte BESS 2 Project is being developed by Almonte BESS Limited Partnership, an affiliate of Wahgoshig Solar FIT5 LP which has been approved by the IESO among the 55 Qualified Applicants with the experience and capabilities to successfully develop, construct, and operate facilities acquired through these procurements.

Components

The Almonte BESS 2 Project will consist of lithium-ion battery cells connected in stacks and installed inside an enclosed area, like a shipping container or a small enclosure. The enclosed area will also house the balance-of-plant equipment such as an inverter, a battery management system and a dedicated HVAC unit for proper ventilation. The battery packs feed inverters that connect to a transformer tied to the power grid. The Project will also have a private access road connecting the site with County Road 29 S.

Compliance

The Almonte BESS 2 Project will comply with all regulatory bodies permitting requirements including the Electrical Safety Authority, the Town of Mississippi Mills, and the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks.

Safety

The Almonte BESS 2 Project will meet or exceed all safety standards applicable to stationary storage, including UL 9540A, NFPA 855 and others. The Almonte BESS 2 Project will use dedicated HVAC systems to remain well-ventilated to keep the batteries at the optimal operating temperature. Additionally, as part of the Project’s proposed Community and Indigenous Engagement activities, Almonte BESS Limited Partnership will sponsor certified fire safety training for fire department personnel at the Mississippi Mills Fire Department.

Security

The Almonte BESS 2 Project will have restricted access to prevent any health and safety incidents and be monitored 24×7 through a secure remote-monitoring facility.

More information about the IESO’s Long Term Capacity Procurement and the list of Qualified Applicants:

Location

The Almonte BESS 2 Project has been submitted into the IESO’s LT-1 Deliverability Test to understand if the local grid infrastructure can support new electricity capacity. The Almonte BESS 2 Project will connect to a distribution-level feeder that is owned by Hydro One.

For a more detailed site plan, please see Figure 1: Almonte BESS 2 Project Site.

Figure 1: Almonte BESS 2 Project Site

Benefits to the Community

There are various economic and non-economic Community Benefits associated with Almonte BESS 2, a proposed key energy infrastructure project located in the Town of Mississippi Mills. The Almonte BESS 2 Project will provide power to meet growing regional demand in the  area, lease revenues for local landowners, additional property taxes for the Town of Mississippi Mills and economic activity within the Town of Mississippi Mills.

Creation of high-skilled jobs in construction – civil works, mechanical installation, electrical connection, landscaping.

Property tax benefits, diversified income stream for landowners, especially on underutilized land.

The development of Almonte BESS 2 in the rural commercial zone of the Town of Mississippi Mills will serve the larger electrical resiliency requirements of the area.

The Municipality of Mississippi Mills has published plans that are in line with the development of a lithium-ion BESS in its municipality. The Plans emphasize a need to reduce green house gas (GHG) emissions through renewable energy generation. Lithium-ion batteries minimize the need for natural gas peaker plants and support/complement the ongoing development of renewable energy systems. The associated plans are – 

  • Mississippi Mills Strategic Plan 2020-2023: Community Value Statements – ENVIRONMENT – Ensure a clean, safe and sustainable environment.
  • Municipality of Mississippi Mills Community Official Plan:
    • 4.1.2 Air Quality and Greenhouse Gas Emissions – This Plan recognizes that one component of long-term economic prosperity involves providing opportunities for increased energy generation, supply and conservation, including alternative energy systems and renewable energy systems. The policies developed for energy, air quality and greenhouse gas emissions are as follows:
      • Increased energy supply shall be promoted by providing opportunities for energy generation facilities to accommodate current and projected needs, and the use of renewable energy systems and alternate energy systems, where feasible.
      • Alternate energy systems and renewable energy systems shall be permitted in Almonte, Pakenham Village, villages and rural settlement areas, in rural areas and agricultural areas in accordance with provincial and federal requirements. In rural areas and agricultural areas, these systems should be designed and constructed to minimize impacts on agricultural areas.

Battery Energy Storage Systems support the integration of flexible generation resources and provide intelligent resilience to the regional electricity grid. Almonte BESS 2 will further support the electrification of transport and the environmental sustainability goals laid out by the plans from the Town of Mississippi Mills.

Anticipated Project Timelines

2022
Land Lease
  • Technical Assessments
  • Permitting Review
2022 → 2023
IESO Procurement
  • Consultation with municipality and neighbours
2023 → 2024
Engineering, Design & Approvals
  • IESO contract award
  • Design and construction is planned
2025 → 2026
Commercial Operation
  • Storage system is installed
  • Local electrical grid connection occurs along existing lines and connection points
  • Remote monitoring
  • Annual maintenance
2047
Decomissioning
  • Equipment is removed
  • Land fully remediated

Project Updates

May 2024 – Contract Award

We are happy to announce that Almonte BESS 2, our lithium-ion battery energy storage project located in Almonte, ON, has been successful in the IESO’s Long-Term 1 (LT1) procurement. We look forward to working with the Municipality of Mississippi Mills and the local community throughout the development of the project.

Public Community Meetings

Notice Of Public Community Meeting

Public Community Meeting Date and Time

Meeting Date:
November 30, 2023

Meeting Time:
4:00 to 8:00 PM

Meeting Venue:
Almonte Civitan Club – Main Hall
500 Almonte St, Almonte, ON K0A 1A0

Public Community Meeting Minutes

Community and Indigenous Engagement Plan

Almonte BESS Limited Partnership is developing a Community and Indigenous Engagement Plan that identifies a strategy for establishing and sustaining a transparent and productive engagement with Community stakeholders and Indigenous Communities. When posted, we would encourage interested stakeholders to review this document to understand the Almonte BESS 2 Project’s community engagement process.

Developer Background

Wahgoshig Solar FIT5 LP

Wahgoshig Solar FIT 5 LP (“Wahgoshig Solar”), is a partnership formed between the Apitipi Anicinapek Nation and Compass Renewable Energy Consulting Inc. Wahgoshig Solar developed, constructed, and operates four 500 kWac/600 kWdc (2.4 MWdc total) ground mount Feed-in Tariff (“FIT”) projects under the former FIT program in Ontario. Wahgoshig Solar engaged Compass to manage the development, permitting and construction of these facilities.

Compass Renewable Energy Consulting Inc. (“Compass”) has been consulting and developing renewable and clean energy projects in Ontario for more than a decade, with experience across the development lifecycle from pre-screening, contracting, construction, commissioning and operations. Compass is supporting the development of four (4) Projects that were awarded contracts in the Expedited Long-Term 1 Request for Proposals (E-LT1 RFP) that concluded on June 27, 2023. Compass has developed over 100 renewable energy projects in Ontario representing over 100 megawatts (MW) in the last 6 years and supported the development of over 2,000 MWs for our clients.

Compass Greenfield Development (CGD) was born out of Compass Renewable Energy Consulting Inc. CGD leverages our consulting DNA, implementing a proven process, to identify and advance greenfield development opportunities for solar and battery energy storage. We have a long-term strategic perspective coupled with on the ground experience in doing the doing that results in projects getting to commercial operation. All of our stakeholders benefit including landowners, municipalities, Indigenous partners, investors and the public at large. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Energy storage fundamentally improves the way we generate, deliver, and consume electricity. Energy storage helps during emergencies like power outages from storms, equipment failures and, accidents. But the game-changing nature of energy storage is its ability to balance power supply and demand instantaneously – within milliseconds – which makes power networks more resilient, efficient, and cleaner than ever before.

BESS systems are considerably smaller footprint compared to other clean technologies such as solar or wind farms. On average, a 25MW BESS system occupies 1 acre of land.

BESS have to apply with municipal, provincial and national permitting and codes and standards. The following is a non-exhaustive list of industry standards our Project will comply with:

  • UL 9540 Standard for Energy Storage Systems and Equipment
  • UL 9540A (Test Method for Evaluating Thermal Runaway Fire Propagation in Battery Energy Storage Systems)
  • National & Provincial Building Code
  • National Fire Code Canada
  • Underwriters Laboratories of Canada
  • NECB 2017 National Energy Code of Canada for Buildings
  • ULC (Underwriters Laboratories of Canada)
  • UL 1741 Standard for Inverters, Converters, Controllers, and Interconnections
  • UL 1973 Standard for Batteries for Use in Stationary, Vehicle Auxiliary Power and Light Electric Rail (LER)

BESS are certified to UL9540 and UL9540A standards to prevent fire spread and suppression at the cell and the BESS system level. BESS enclosures have built-in fire suppression system (FSS) solutions. The FSS system is composed of smoke detectors, gas detectors and fire agents, whose main function is to prevent fire spread in time when any open flame signal or gas signal appears in the battery system and send out an emergency fire alert signal to the EMS system.

These BESS do not use lead acid batteries, and therefore do not leak.

Mechanical failures include physical damage that could create heat or a fire. Hazards associated with lithium-ion battery energy storage systems are centred on the flammable organic electrolyte and its highly reactive electrodes. However, if the batteries are punctured, there is a risk of electrolytes being exposed to air, which will result in a chemical reaction, leading to thermal runaway and combustion.

Other potentially hazardous wastes would include fire residue, debris, and fire extinguishing agents leading to contamination of soil and underground water via leaching, burying, dissolution, infiltration and runoff. The management of these risks starts at the cell level, with the selection of battery chemistry, and compliance with local AHJs and global certifications. This is where UL9540A certification becomes critical to BESS projects. Any other hazardous leaks will be contained in the enclosure.

BESS systems are subject to third-party certification to ensure they comply with all of the required codes and standards.

BESS facilities have an expected lifespan of 22 years, or more, with equipment replacement and repowering. At the time of decommissioning, the installed components will be removed and reused/recycled, where possible, and the site restored. All removal of equipment will be done per the applicable regulations and manufacturer recommendations. The below summarizes the decommissioning procedure that would be enacted at the end of project life for each component. 

BESS – Disconnect all above-ground wirings. Remove all BESS enclosures and support structures.

Medium Voltage (MV) Stations, Substation – Disconnect and remove all electrical equipment. Remove the inverter and associated equipment. Remove high-voltage substation transformer. Remove concrete foundations for MV Stations and substation components. 

Access roads and other components – Consult with the property owner to determine if access roads should be left in place for their continued use. If roads are to be removed, the aggregate materials will be excavated by a backhoe/front-end loader, along with any underlying geotextile fabric. Compacted areas restored.

Underground cables – Underground electrical lines running between the inverters and the substation will be removed. All foundation materials will be removed.

This scale of BESS projects generally take between 6 to 12 months from the start of construction till commissioning.

As a part of the Environmental Assessment permitting process, a Noise Impact Assessment for the Project will be conducted. In this report, the ambient noise survey will identify the ‘noise envelop’ for the Project location based on zoning, proximity to highways and other factors that may affect sound levels in the area. Once a survey is conducted, any potential risks of the BESS exceeding the ‘noise budget’ and violating any provincial norms would be mitigated based on suggested noise mitigation efforts that may be required to successfully secure an environmental permit.

The BESS enclosures will have built in fire suppression system (FSS) solutions. The FSS system is composed of smoke detectors, gas detectors and fire agents, whose main function is to prevent fire spread in time when any open flame signal or gas signal appears in the battery system and sent out fire signal to EMS system. BESS will be certified to UL9540 and UL9540A standards to prevent fire spread and suppression at the cell and the BESS system level. The management of any risks will start at the cell level, with selection of battery chemistry, and compliance with local authorities having jurisdiction (AHJs) and global certifications.

Compass has also engaged the local Fire department for a screening of our site and to provide additional training to equip firefighters with knowledge of the BESS fire protection standards.

Electric fields are produced whenever a conductor such as a power line is connected to a source of electrical voltage. Magnetic fields are produced whenever an electrical current flows in a conductor. An example of this is the plugging of a lamp into a wall outlet in a home. When the lamp is plugged in, a voltage is induced in the cord to the lamp that causes an electric field to be created around the cord. In this example, if the lamp is turned on allowing electricity to flow to the lamp, a magnetic field is created around the lamp cord in addition to the electric field.

For the BESS system, the magnetic field will vary with the amount of power being charged or discharged, and the time of the day when the charging and discharging would occur. However, the strength of both electric and magnetic fields will decrease rapidly with distance from the source – for each doubling of the distance from the EMF source, the EMF will drop by a factor of eight. Electric fields will also diminish from absorption by any vegetation (including low-growing vegetation) located in its path because the plants effectively ground the electric fields.

There will be a short distance from the BESS to the connection point where the EMF would be created. More importantly, there are few to no buildings in the vicinity of the connection point.

If deemed necessary by authorities having jurisdiction, measurements of magnetic fields could be made before construction of the Project and after the Project begins operating to assess whether EMF from the Project’s electrical infrastructure would extend into the neighbouring area.

Construction of the Project would happen in phases, and be carried out by small teams of 5-10 attending to site work in a ordered manner to avoid any traffic management issues at the site. The phases would generally focus on the civil works, mechanical installation, electrical connection, landscaping. It was highlighted that after construction and commissioning of the project, there would be minimal employee traffic to the site as the BESS will be remotely monitored and scheduled site visits would happen quarterly to ensure stable operations and effective preventive maintenance.

The number of containers would be dictated by the final technology selection for the Project. It can be estimated that the average 40ft container would be capable of supplying 1MW of capacity and 4 MWh of energy.

Contact Us

It is important to us that Almonte BESS 2 be successfully integrated into the Town of Mississippi Mills and we are seeking to incorporate feedback through Public Community Meetings and this Project Website into the development of this Project.

To submit feedback or send us any questions about the project, please contact us:

Email:
info@almonteenergystorage2.com

By mail: 
192 Spadina Ave, Suite 506
Toronto, ON M5T 2C2