Four new natural gas infrastructure projects are well underway in rural regions of the province, with more planned.

The provincial government announced its Natural Gas Expansion Support Program in the summer to extend access to natural gas to unserved communities across the province. The program will allocate approximately $130 million to support new natural gas expansion projects over a three-year period from 2021 to 2023.

Since its launch, the program has identified nine projects for construction, four of which— in Chatham-Kent, Southern Bruce, Chippewas of the Thames First Nation, and Scugog Island—are currently underway. The nine projects are expected to connect more than 9,000 customers in 16 communities. The Chatham-Kent project alone will create up to 1,400 jobs in the greenhouse industry.

In December, Associate Minister of Energy Bill Walker announced that the province would further expand the program. The government directed the Ontario Energy Board to collect information about further expansion opportunities and develop a report on eligible projects for the ministry in early 2020. The board will deliver its report to the government by August 2020.

"Natural gas is a safe, reliable and lower-cost heating fuel that will lead to cheaper home heating costs for families and more investment by businesses throughout the province," said Walker.

"This is a huge win for Bruce County and for rural, northern and Indigenous communities throughout Ontario,” added Huron-Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson. "The average household switching to natural gas could save up to $2,500 a year in energy costs."

The Chippewas of the Thames Community Expansion project is being developed by Enbridge Gas, and received $1.43 million in funding from the Natural Gas Expansion Support Program. The project will connect approximately 45 residential and commercial customers.

Meanwhile, the Chatham-Kent project, which is also being developed by Enbridge Gas, received $8 million in program funding. The municipality estimates the additional natural gas capacity could create up to 1,400 new jobs in the greenhouse industry alone.

Both pipelines are expected to be in service by the end of 2019.