Ontario Premier Doug Ford was in Leamington on Friday announcing the start of construction of by Enbridge Gas on its $358 million Panhandle Regional Expansion Project in the southwest region.
The province says the project is expected to secure approximately 7,000 jobs and enable $4.5 billion of investment opportunities in Ontario.
This project will lead to the construction of approximately 19 kilometres of new pipeline that will parallel the existing pipeline and increase the capacity of Enbridge's Panhandle Transmission System.
Officials say the pipeline expansion is a vital investment in energy infrastructure that will encourage economic development in Southwestern Ontario and support the growth of the region's vibrant world-leading greenhouse industry.
Speaking on AM800's The Shift with Patty Handysides, Stephen Lecce, Minister of Energy and Electrification says there is a renaissance of growth happening in the province.
"It's a good challenge to have and so we're leading in with an affordable natural gas expansion. Which is going to help a lot of farmers, a lot of greenhouses, a lot of families save money with reliable energy."
He says building infrastructure helps the province to lure investment from here and abroad.
"Keep in mind, for a lot of folks who are relying on say baseboard heating, it's a 50 per cent savings to turn to natural gas. Heating oil, much dirtier option, 69 per cent savings when relative to heating oil and for propane, roughly 50 per cent. So my point is, you're going to save money. It's going to be reliable, and continued to be delivered to families as those communities grow."
Lecce says the pipeline will parallel the existing infrastructure with a significant increase of capacity to serve the growth of the region.
"There will be roughly 7,000 jobs created as a consequence of this $358 million expansion by Enbridge. So yeah, it's about expanding capacity fundamentally, which is why we think it's really important that we do it today to secure the jobs and investments tomorrow, and as I mentioned, this is essentially enabling 19 kilometres of new pipeline."
The Panhandle Regional Expansion Project is part of Ontario’s efforts to meet the province’s growing energy demands.
In May 2024, the Ontario Energy Board (OEB) granted Enbridge Gas leave to construct for the Panhandle Regional Expansion Project, permitting the project to proceed.
The project has a targeted in-service date of Nov. 1, 2024, with additional construction related to the project to be completed in 2025.
The Panhandle Transmission System currently serves residential, commercial, industrial, greenhouse and power generation customers in Dawn-Euphemia, St. Clair, Chatham-Kent, Windsor, Lakeshore, Leamington, Kingsville, Essex, Amherstburg, LaSalle, and Tecumseh.
-with files from CTV Windsor