* Province to cut solar rates more than 20 pct, wind 15 pct
* Rate cuts apply only to new projects
* Prices for water, biogas, biomass unchanged
* New projects with aboriginal support given priority
* Commitment to renewable power targets affirmed
TORONTO, March 22 (Reuters) - Ontario's renewable energy sector breathed a sigh of relief on Thursday as the province announced rate reductions for solar and wind power that were more modest than some had feared and it repeated its commitment to renewable power targets.
Following a review of its ambitious clean-energy program, Canada's most populous province said it will cut the rates it pays for power from new solar projects by more than 20 percent and wind rates by about 15 percent, reflecting lower prices for generating equipment such as solar pane ls and wind turbines.
Ontario's feed-in-tariff plan, aimed to spur job creation and help replace coal-fired power in the province, has been a source of anger for ratepayers facing higher electricity bills.
Launched in 2009 with a global recession underway, the program paid green energy producers generous above-market rates for power that they could "feed" into the provincial grid.
