Roadmap 2020: Powering Canada's Future with Solar Electricity
The Canadian Solar Industries Association (CanSIA) is excited to share its vision of Canada's solar electricity industry in "Roadmap 2020: Powering Canada's Future with Solar Electricity." Roadmap 2020 lays out a confident plan that will achieve two primary objectives. It will solidify solar electricity as a mainstream energy source, and an integral part of Canada's diversified electricity mix. It will also ensure the solar electricity industry will be sustainable, with no direct subsidies, and operating in a supportive and stable policy and regulatory environment.
"Solar electricity is the smart choice to power Canada's future", said former CanSIA President and CEO John Gorman. "We've seen public support for renewable energy increase significantly over the last few years, a sign Canadians don't want to just consume electricity but produce it. They want to be 'prosumers'." With Roadmap 2020 as its guide, CanSIA will lead the way for Canada's solar electricity future - unlocking solar's full potential and cementing it as the smart energy choice for Canada
The plan focuses on five key areas that require action:
- Develop a supportive and stable policy and regulatory environment that recognize the total value of solar electricity, including externalities;
- Simplify and streamline permitting and processes for grid interconnection and metering of solar electricity systems;
- Reduce soft costs to levels consistent with global best practices;
- Educate the Canadian population on the true benefits and costs of solar electricity, and empower them to take action to support and adopt solar; and
- Develop new and enhance existing relationships with technologies, applications and stakeholders to create synergies that enables greater solar electricity use in Canada.