The province of Ontario, Canada's industrial heartland and by far its most populous region, faces both an opportunity and a dilemma in its efforts to line up new supplies to feed its gas-fired power plants. The opportunity comes in the form of mounting shale gas production in nearby US jurisdictions as a source of cheaper energy, particularly since its apparent abundance — and the low prices this entails for the foreseeable future — offers a chance for the province to secure an economic windfall that could last for decades. The dilemma comes from the fact that Ontario receives the bulk of its supplies from TransCanada's mainline trunk system — also known as the Northern Line — from Alberta, which the Globe and Mail reports has suffered a 70% decline in gas volumes over the past five years and now operates at just 50% capacity — with toll rates to Ontario consumers more than doubling during that time.
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