The cannabis industry will not be a mellow new player on the province’s power grid.
Indeed, the energy munched by the fledgling cannabis-growing business is expected to rise by 1,250 per cent in Ontario over the next five years, according to a recent study by the province’s Independent Electricity System Operator.
“We’re seeing absolutely a significant increase in electricity demand because of the greenhouse growth in Ontario,” says Terry Young, vice-president of policy, engagement and innovation at the IESO.
“If you forecast out five years, what we’re seeing is over a thousand per cent growth in electricity to a sector,” says Young, whose Crown corporation released a study on electrical use by cannabis growers in October.
At a projected 1.258 terawatt-hour (TWh) consumption by 2024, pot producers will suck up far more energy than the 0.8 TWh the province’s auto sector used in 2018.
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