Translation At a time when Hydro-Qubec recognizes that the wave of solar energy will sooner or later hit Qubec, a Chinese giant is targeting the province to create a joint venture that will focus on this developing sector, Le Devoir noted. The Chinese company Linuo Solar Power, a subsidiary of the Linuo industrial group, has just hired a lobbyist in Quebec to survey various partners, with whom it wishes to manufacture and install solar panels. According to the registration added Monday to the Registry of Lobbyists of Quebec, Linuo wishes to prepare a business plan to start the creation of a joint venture. The company intends to solicit Hydro-Qubec, Investissement Qubec and the Departments of Economy, Energy and the Environment. "The project involves the installation of photovoltaic equipment generating electricity from solar power," said the mandate given to lobbyist Gilles Coulombe, a former federal official. It is expected that the project will be built turn-key on the basis of an agreement between the parties. " Solar Opening Mr. Coulombe explained that representatives of Linuo came to visit Quebec a few years ago to assess the potential of a possible project. They decided to go ahead with their proposal after hearing the president and CEO of Hydro-Qubec, Eric Martel, open the door to solar energy last January at the economic forum in Davos. "If it is profitable, Hydro-Qubec could consider [the possibility of] creating a business to make solar," he said in an interview with the Journal de Montral. We could buy a box that already makes it elsewhere to come and settle in Quebec. It can also be a partnership. But we are wondering. " Last week, at the Montreal Conference, Mr. Martel returned to the subject by predicting that more and more Quebecers will produce electricity with their own solar panels over the next few years. "ric Martel talked about providing photovoltaic roofs. It would be nice to have them here rather than import them, "says Coulombe. This is to determine the best project choice for Quebec. " Partners to find Linuo has already delivered large-scale solar projects in more than 30 countries, including China, Germany, Australia and South Africa. In the case of Quebec, the project is still embryonic and the shape that the joint venture could take is not stopped, warns Gilles Coulombe. "You have to make a business plan and see which players are interested," he said, referring to the Caisse de dpt and the Fonds de solidarit FTQ. "Ideally, Hydro-Qubec would embark," he adds. Asked about this, the crown corporation indicated that the project had not yet been presented. "As for our interest in a joint venture, it is too early to specify the paths we could take to develop the solar sector in Quebec," replies Marc-Antoine Pouliot. For now, we are in reflection and analysis. " In the office of the Minister of the Economy, Dominique Anglade, it is confirmed to have received a proposal on the part of Linuo. The file is currently being analyzed by the ministry, says press officer Jolyane Pronovost. "We always have an interest in projects that can create wealth, but will it be positive for that one? It is too early to say. " Realistic project? Pierre-Olivier Pineau, chair of the Energy Sector Management Chair, is not convinced by the Linuo project, given the Quebec context. "With the current electricity prices in Quebec, surplus energy and solicitation, solar photovoltaics has virtually no chance in the next ten years in Quebec," he said. -t it. The solar market in Quebec is undoubtedly limited but it is difficult to estimate its size since Statistics Canada does not record the data on this sector in its annual balance sheet on energy availability and flow in Canada. That said, Quebec is better positioned than we think to produce solar power. A document produced by Hydro-Qubec using data from Natural Resources Canada tells us that the average daily insolation, measured in kilowatt hours per square meter, is higher in southern Quebec than in Germany and Japan. These two countries are among the world leaders in solar photovoltaic energy.