Big news from the provincial government and SaskPower!
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SaskPower boosts wind power production in Saskatchewan
SaskPower is launching two new programs that will enable the corporation to more than double wind power production in the province. The Green Options Plan and the Green Options Partners Program will add another 200 megawatts (MW) of wind power to SaskPower’s generation capacity.
“As our government announced in the Throne Speech on October 21, we are making a significant commitment to increased wind power in Saskatchewan,” said Bill Boyd, Minister responsible for SaskPower. “These programs will enable SaskPower to continue to lead in the production of clean renewable energy that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help ensure Saskatchewan has a sustainable supply of electricity for many years to come.”
Under the Green Options Plan, SaskPower will undertake a competitive process to procure up to 175 MW of wind power from one or more Independent Power Producers.
The Green Options Partners Program, meanwhile, will see SaskPower introduce a standing offer program to purchase up to 50 MW of renewable power from private sector developers, with up to 25 MW of the total coming from wind power. The remainder will be generated through proven clean technologies, such as biomass, heat recovery or low impact hydro generation.
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The RFQ is expected to be released on December 1, 2009.
There have been some additional developments since this article. SaskPower is not on track to have 400 MW total from wind power a few years from now. This would put them at around 8.5% wind power. This would put them ahead of most of the proverbial pack. However, they do not have any other renewable projects of note other than wind.
ReplyDeleteMy volunteer group and I recently completed a proposal for SaskPower to add a new option to their GreenPower system. We advocate that citizens have the ability to invest directly in green energy projects that they are interested in (but are not yet built!). If anyone is interested in the full proposal, they can find it here: http://www.visionofearth.org/featured-articles/publicly-administered-green-energy-futures/