SaskPower Minister Dustin Duncan today announced the first stage of the competition to build one or more utility-scale wind facilities, which will see up to 300 megawatts (MW) of capacity added to the provincial grid.

“With this competition we are taking another major step toward meeting SaskPower's Prairie Resilience commitment to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 40 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030,” Duncan said. “It is also a demonstration of our commitment to building a cleaner energy future without the need for a harmful carbon tax.”

Wind power has decreased in cost in recent years and is an economical way of meeting SaskPower’s renewable energy targets.

“Today’s announcement builds on 387 MW of wind power projects we are currently in the process of adding at locations near Herbert, Riverhurst and Assiniboia,” said SaskPower President & CEO Mike Marsh. “We look forward to building on our already strong relationship with the wind industry as we incorporate this vital component of our future power generation mix.”

The Request for Qualification (RFQ) opens in late October 2019. The RFQ phase allows SaskPower to screen prospective developers on experience and financial capability as well as the environmental suitability of sites. This will be followed by the Request for Proposals phase, during which qualified proponents will be evaluated through a fair, open and transparent process. Project award is expected in late 2020 with the facility expected to be in-service by late 2023.

Saskatchewan currently has a total of 241 megawatts (MW) of installed wind power capacity from six wind power projects.

For further information on Saskatchewan's cleaner power future, visit saskpower.com.

At a glance ...

• Competitive process for one or more facilities totalling up to 300 MW of wind power will soon be in the RFQ stage
• The added wind capacity will contribute to meeting SaskPower's greenhouse gas reduction commitments
• 300 MW of wind is enough to power approximately 120,000 homes