Renewable Energy Companies Flocking to Ontario

The Canadian province of Ontario is fast becoming a vanguard for renewable energy.

Thanks to a new and incredibly generous set of feed-in tariffs, as well as the fact the province sits right across the border from one of the world's biggest clean energy markets, many renewable energy companies are putting up shop in Ontario.

Ontario has launched North America's strongest feed-in tariff program at a time when many other jurisdictions including Germany and France are reeling in their subsidies.  Ontario has also decided to phase out coal and not build any new coal-fired plants; so the province is looking for other clean energy options.

It has not taken renewable energy companies long to locate this small, but very profitable market.  In January, Samsung announced a C$7 billiion investment to build solar and wind farms in Ontario.  Last week, Bosch Solar Energy, a subsidiary of Robert Bosch announced it plans to manufacture thin film solar panels.  The list of companies considering following Samsung and Bosch into Ontario continues to grow, and includes Vestas Wind Systems (CPH:VWS) -- the world's largest wind turbine manufacturer -- and NextEra Energy Resources (NYSE:FPL) -- the largest wind producer in the United States.

Mahdi Hosseini, an analyst at FBR Capital Markets, explains, "People are looking at the North American market as the next growth area.  In coming to Ontario and setting up manufacturing, the hope is to use that manufacturing and into the U.S. market.  They will benefit from the Ontario market in the near future and [the U.S. market] in the long term."

Read the full story at Reuters:  Ontario bolsters green support as Europe backs off