In the province's latest green energy push, Ontario will award $8-billion to dozens of companies in its renewable energy efforts.

Premier Dalton McGuinty and Energy Minister Brad Duguid made the funding announcement in Cornwall and Whitby, Ont., on Thursday.

The 184 approved projects include 36 community and aboriginal proposals throughout the province as well as major corporations at home and abroad.

The entire project will create 20,000 new jobs across the province.

The projects are in addition to 510 medium-sized projects announced in March as part of the government's Green Energy Act's feed-in tariff program.

"Ontario has a vision for green energy — we will be a North American leader," McGuinty said in a statement.

"We have practical, aggressive policies to secure green energy generation, research and manufacturing, which will create good jobs in a growing industry."

The projects will create almost 2,500 megawatts of renewable energy from wind, solar and run-of-river hydro projects, and generate enough energy to power 600,000 homes in the province, McGuinty said.

Seventy-six of the projects involve ground-mounted solar panels, 47 are onshore wind, 46 are waterpower and seven are biogas projects.

There are also two biomass and four landfill gas projects as well as a rooftop solar and offshore wind project.

The projects range from a wind onshore project in Clarington, Ont., to three Cornwall-area solar projects including the Effisolar and Penn Energy projects in South-Glengarry.

"This is the most significant climate change initiative in all of North America," Duguid said.

"It puts us ahead of the game and that's where we fully intend to stay."

With files from The Canadian Press