NOTES FOR PAUL MCKAY/RENOVE Paul McKay helped design the Feed-in-Tariff (FIT) green power purchasing program

in Ontario, Canada. It is directly modelled on the original FIT legislation and rules pioneered by Germany, which was later copied in Spain, Italy, France and other countries. Ontario was the first place in North or South America to adopt a FIT program. The essential purpose to acquire green power from project developers at a fixed, transparent price under a 20-year contract. This gives the green project a known revenue stream for two decades, which is key to obtain project financing. The Ontario FIT offers contracts for wind, solar, hydro, biogas and biomass projects. There are different prices for different technologies and sizes. Micro-FIT category was less than 10 kw. Only 3 months after the Ontario FIT began in October, 2009 more than 8,000 Mw of new green projects applied for contracts far more than the government or utilities expected. An important rule was that wind and solar projects must prove that 50-60% of the project value was sourced in

Ontario. This stimulated related manufacturing in the solar and wind sectors. BENEFITS 1. Example: One company, Canadian Solar Inc. was awarded more than 175 Mw of approved projects, and it built a new panel manufacturing plant which now employs 300 and also supplies panels to the US market. It makes a new panel every 45 seconds. Components for wind parks (turbines, towers, gears) are now also made in Ontario. 2. the FIT program prevents financial or political corruption because the prices (tariffs) are publicly posted, and every generator in each category gets the same price, terms, and contract rules. It has a high transparency. 3. the FIT stimulates democratic access to the grid and electron market. In Ontario, thousands of farmers became solar, wind and biogas generators (through co-operative purchase programs) or leasing land, but also individuals, municipal governments, schools, recreation centers, churches, and individual homeowners. This created a new green manufacturing base, jobs in the supply chain (engineering, parts, electricians, installation). This created multi-regional job and economic benefits.

Since Ontario launched its FIT program, China and Japan have also created very similar FIT programs, which are having similar benefits. Brasil should be congratulated for the new ANEEL regulation 782, and for the wind auctions in recent years. This will help foster micro-generation. But it is only a small step. Brasil has far more solar, wind and biogas potential than Germany or Ontario. Right now, it is like a fallow field, producing nothing. An authentic FIT program would make Brasil a world power in solar, wind and biogas generation, create a new export sector, and bring new economic development and jobs to most regions of the country. For example, no company will build a significant solar manufacturing plant in Brasil unless the market is opened up to opportunity and a minimum of 300 Mw of contracts are signed. The famous French writer Victor Hugo wrote: Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come. He was speaking of the birth of democracy in France. Today, the powerful idea of the 21st century is democratizing grid access and the ascent of clean, de-centralized generation.