Policy on Climate Change tabled in Namibia

The Namibian newspaper is reporting that the National Policy on Climate Change for Namibia was tabled in the Namibian parliament last week, bringing the country closer to an official policy to deal with climate change. The majority of Namibians rely on agriculture, livestock management and fishing for an income, and scientists have said that climate change impacts will range from increases in temperature and evaporation as well as unpredictable rainfall, causing flooding or draughts. On the positive side however, climate change also offers opportunities, Minister of Environment and Tourism, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, pointed out. She noted that the global drive to stabilise greenhouse gas concentrations is increasing the importance of alternative energy sources, such as solar, wind and other renewable energy resources, which Namibia is particularly well-endowed with. Addressing the opportunities and mitigating the negative effects are part of the policy on climate change. “The policy lays out a number of principles that ought to guide the process, while also outlining the roles and responsibilities of the relevant stakeholders to ensure the effective implementation of the policy,” the Minister writes.

Shore Gold signs MoU for biomass ethanol production with Nipawin Biomass

Under the terms of the MoU, Shore Gold Inc. (“Shore Gold”) will provide waste timber from its mining activities to Nipawin Biomass Ethanol New Generation Co-operative Ltd. (“Nipawin Biomass”) which will process and convert the timber to cellulose ethanol at its proposed green fuel facility in the town of Nipawin, Saskatchewan, Canada.

Shore Gold is currently in the process of developing Saskatchewan's first diamond mine, the Star-Orion South Diamond Project, at a site in the Fort à la Corne forest which is approximately 60 kilometres west of the town of Nipawin, Saskatchewan. Shore Gold states that the proposed diamond mine site will require approximately 4,250 hectares to be cleared of timber, which is less than 4 percent of the forest.

Nipawin Biomass and the Saskatchewan Research Council have jointly developed a proprietary conversion technology which will process synthesis gas from waste wood and waste farm fibre, such as flax fibre or straw, into ethanol and other alcohols. Its proposed ethanol plant in Nipawin will require approximately 200,000 oven dried metric tonnes of cellulosic fibre per year, approximately two-thirds of which would come from forest waste product. Shore Gold's available supply would provide a significant volume, but only a fraction of the ethanol plant's needs.

The MoU provides that the parties will work together to achieve cost reduction for Shore Gold, a secure supply of cellulose at the best possible terms for Nipawin Biomass and seek involvement of First Nations people or businesses in the clearing, removal and transportation of the biomass.

Unique “Wind Storage” provision in Power Purchase Agreement

Manitoba Hydro and Minnesota Power have signed a 250 MW Power Purchase Agreement which includes a unique provision whereby Minnesota Power can transmit electricity generated from their wind farms in the US state of North Dakota to the Canadian province of Manitoba where it will be “stored” in Manitoba Hydro’s hydroelectric reserves. When Minnesota Power transmits electricity northward to Manitoba, Manitoba Hydro will absorb it into its system – in essence storing the wind power, using the Manitoba system as a rechargeable battery. Minnesota Power will complete the second phase of its 82 MW Bison 1 Wind Energy Center in fall 2011 and recently announced its intent to build Bison II, an additional 105 MW, $170 million USD wind farm in North Dakota. Manitoba Hydro plans to construct two new hydroelectric stations on the upper Nelson River near Hudson Bay: the Keeyask and the Conawapa installations. The new hydro facilities would add another 1930 MW of electricity to the Manitoba Hydro system. The PPA also provides for construction of additional transmission capacity between Manitoba and the United States.

Greengate signs deal with Vestas

Calgary, Alberta-based Greengate Power Corp. and Vestas-Canadian Wind Technology, Inc. have entered into agreements under which Vestas will supply turbines to the 300 MW Blackspring Ridge I Wind Project in the Canadian province of Alberta and provide long-term service and maintenance for the facility. Under the turbine supply agreements, Vestas will deliver 166 of its V90-1.8 MW turbines for installation at Blackspring Ridge I, which is being developed in southern Alberta about 30 kilometers north of the city of Lethbridge. Vestas will also service and maintain the turbines for a period of ten years. Deliveries of the turbines are scheduled to begin during the third quarter of 2012.

Nova Scotia COMFIT plans move forward to boost renewable generation

The Canadian province of Nova Scotia is committing to generate 25% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2015 from a current level of 13%. Among the first steps to meeting this ambitious target is a new Community Feed-in Tariff (COMFIT) program to support community-owned projects using a variety of technologies and a competitive bidding program for medium- to large-scale projects.

The COMFIT combines local ownership with a traditional feed-in tariff market design, offering fixed rates for big wind (projects greater than 50 kW), small wind, biomass, tidal and hydro technologies. Projects must be 51% owned by community groups including municipalities, universities, First Nations, co-ops and Community Economic Development Investment Funds (CEDIFs).

The Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board (UARB) held a hearing to discuss draft rates in early April and final rates are expected soon. Prices range depending on the perceived level of risk associated with the technology. In-stream tidal, a relatively new technology, has a high proposed rate at $0.652/kWh compared to big wind, a more established technology, at $0.452/kWh.

Big wind is expected to play a leading role in Nova Scotia’s new renewable energy mix. Under COMFIT, there are opportunities for partnering with community groups and First Nations who will be looking for expertise. The local Mi’kmaq community is currently in the process of developing its very first renewable energy strategy and is looking at potential areas of collaboration with developers and technology providers on these projects.

Nova Scotia’s new competitive bidding process also paves the way for more medium to large wind projects in the province. In its initial phase, 600 GWh is reserved for larger projects to be split evenly between the province’s main utility, Nova Scotia Power (NSPI), and Independent Power Producers (IPPs). The province will be appointing a Renewable Electricity Administrator (REA) to oversee the request for proposal (RFP) process.

Financing is expected to be a challenge but more so for the smaller-scale COMFIT projects, which may have trouble finding early-stage investment. There is a possibility the province may allow for contract bundling for these smaller projects that would allow developers to reach economies of scale and create more finance options. Canadian banks aren't interested in providing equity for smaller projects at the moment. But hopefully some Canadian banks will draw lessons from European banks that have developed tools for financing small, community-owned renewable energy projects.

The opportunities for developers and suppliers in Nova Scotia will become clear over summer 2011. Clarity on the timing and details on the new RFP are imminent following the appointment of the new REA. The Department of Energy will also open the application process for COMFIT projects following the rates announcement.

Source: Adrienne Baker, Director of Canadian Clean Energy Conferences. Canadian Clean Energy Conferences is organizing the Nova Scotia Feed-in Tariff Forum on September 21-22 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Biomass "bush-to-electricity" generation opportunities in Namibia

Namibia’s national power utility, NamPower, plans to conduct a prefeasibility study into the potential for as many as 20 biomass power plants fuelled using wood from invasive bush species - called "bush-to-electricity" projects. The invasive bush is accelerating desertification by encroaching on pasture land and using limited supplies of water to undermine agriculture in the vast Southern African country.

There is already one “bush-to-electricity” pilot plant operating in northern Namibia supported by a power purchase agreement (PPA) from NamPower. The terms of the PPA are not known.

In May, 20111 NamPower issued a tender notice calling on experienced organisations and individuals to prequalify to undertake the prefeasibility study which is expected to provide a roadmap for developing such power facilities.

A 2010 report by Combating Bush Encroachment for Namibia's Development notes that 26 million hectares of land have already been affected by the invasive bush.

The NamPower prefeasibility study will seek to analyse the potential for "bush-to-electricity" biomass power facilities, as well as identify possible sites and technological solutions.

This is an interesting opportunity as the "bush-to-electricity" projects serve the dual aim of providing renewable electricity and preventing further desertification of Namibia's farmland. I have been in contact with large ranchers affected by invasive bush who have already expressed interest in providing land for such projects and purchasing part of the electrical generation to power their ranches. I am also aware of one Namibian investment company actively pursuing "bush-to-electricity" projects in Namibia.

Changes to carbon trading market in Alberta

The Canadian province's greenhouse gas emissions reduction program, the only one in Canada, currently allows industrial emitters to purchase offset credits from other sectors. This includes certain agricultural sectors that have voluntarily reduced their emissions level in Alberta. Farmers who meet the requirements under various protocols can sell their credits once they have complied with the quantification and verification rules for different types of qualifying projects, such as zero or reduced tillage.

Alberta Environment recently announced important changes to the system which will affect farmers and aggregators.

Farmers will now have until March 31, 2012 to ensure retroactive credits earned from 2002 to 2011 are verified and entered into the registry for sale.

As of January 1, 2012 the system will move to “go forward” credits which will now be verified to a higher standard of reasonable assurance, similar to that of a full financial audit. Once the “go forward” system commences farmers can expect aggregators to require more verification procedures to meet the new tests.

Wind energy in Ontario a significant investment draw and employment engine

The development of wind energy in the Canadian province of Ontario will generate more than 80,000 person-years of employment and attract more than $16 billion CAD in private-sector investment over the next eight years, according to a recent report by renewable energy market research and advisory firm ClearSky Advisors. The report, which was commissioned by the Canadian Wind Energy Association (CANWEA), was based on a quantification of the economic benefits of the projected growth in Ontario’s wind power market from 1,428 megawatts (MW) at the end of 2010 to more than 7,100 MW by 2018. Ontario’s Green Energy and Economy Act, feed-in-tariff and Long-Term Energy Plan “have opened up the market in Ontario for wind energy and will allow faster growth than otherwise would be the case,” said Tim Wohlgemut, a ClearSky principal consultant and co-founder. “Ontario has been put on the global map for renewable energy development, and this has the potential to create a significant number of highly skilled jobs and attract billions in investment to the province.” About 2,125 MW of wind energy projects in Ontario have already been signed and are expected to be constructed during the period covered by the report.

Public information meeting for innovative utility-scale landfill wind turbine project a success

There was a good turnout yesterday evening in Saskatoon to hear Kevin Hudson, P.Eng. and Rod Neufeld, P.Eng. discuss the proposed 2 MW utility-scale wind turbine project at the Saskatoon landfill. This innovative project in only one of a few projects in the world which will reclaim parts of a landfill to install a utility-scale wind turbine and generate clean energy. The project is proposed by the City of Saskatoon utility, Saskatoon Light & Power.

Residents of the residential community of Montgomery in the city of Saskatoon which borders on the existing landfill were in attendance and expressed common concerns relating to sound, shadow flicker and equipment failure. The turbine is proposed to be set back 700 meters from the nearest residence so problems with sound, shadow flicker or equipment failure are very minimal if existent at all. Residents of Montgomery seemed generally more concerned about the fact that the landfill itself was not being closed and other large projects such as a new bridge and freeway will also be constructed in their area in the future.

Personally, I was a bit disappointed as the residents of Montgomery failed to see the opportunity to capitalize on the new Green Energy Park which is proposed to include a number of renewable and/or low impact electrical generation facilities, including a Tall Wind Turbine, Landfill Gas Power Generation Facility, Turboexpander Power Generation Facility (in conjunction with SaskEnergy), and potential to add fuel cells, heat recovery and solar power generation in the future. Instead of being referred to as “the community next to the landfill”, Montgomery could become “the community next to the Green Energy Park” and could move towards incentivizing homeowners in the community to develop their own renewable generation projects on their homes and become a true low-emissions “green” residential community.

South African utility, Eskom secures loan of $365 million USD loan for renewable energy development

The African Development Bank has approved Eskom’s $365 million USD loan for financing the 100 MW wind project which Eskom plans in the Western Cape and a 100MW concentrating solar power project in the Northern Cape. South Africa and Namibia are expected to lead the continent in renewable energy development in Southern Africa. The Namibian Ministry of Mines and Energy has recently revived its Solar Revolving Fund freeing up $1.5 million USD in order to encourage private households in Namibia to invest in solar PV systems.

Canadian Solar to build PV cell plant in China

Canadian Solar Inc. (Toronto, Ontario) has signed an agreement with Suzhou New District Economic Development Group Corporation and Suzhou Science and Technology City Development Co., Ltd. under which the parties will form a joint venture to build and operate a 600 MW PV cell production plant in Suzhou, China. The new facility will be located approximately eight kilometers from Canadian Solar’s existing solar cell production plant in Suzhou and will produce the company’s ELPS and ESE high-efficiency solar cells. Canadian Solar will contribute 61% of the registered equity in the joint venture. The company said that the new joint venture will allow it to reach a total PV-cell production capacity of approximately 2 GW by the first quarter of 2012.

Japan takes WTO dispute with Ontario regarding FIT local procurement requirements to next stage

Reuters is reporting today that Japan asked the World Trade Organization (WTO) to form a legal panel to decide whether Canadian provincial backing for renewable energy gives an unfair advantage to Canadian equipment makers.

Japan has given up attempts to resolve amicably a dispute over the Ontario feed-in-tariff (FIT) that guarantees prices for renewable energy as long as it is generated with Canadian-made equipment, Japan's ambassador to the WTO said in a letter to the chairman of the WTO's disputes division.

"Consultations failed to resolve the dispute. As a result, Japan respectfully requests that a panel be established to examine this matter," Japanese Ambassador Yoichi Otabe wrote.

The dispute stokes a larger debate over plans by countries including Canada, the United States and China among others to reserve public works as well as energy and environmental projects worth billions of dollars for local firms.

"Japan is seriously concerned about a possible proliferation of such protectionist measures all over the world," Japan said in a statement.

Canadian officials in Ottawa were not immediately available for comment.

Japan says that the Ontario FIT violates Canada's obligations as a WTO member.

Japan says that the local procurement requirement of the FIT is illegal and cites Ontario's decision in January 2011 to further raise the local content requirement.

WTO members will discuss the opening of legal proceedings on June 17, 2011 with Canada likely to ask for a delay while it studies Japan's complaint.

Outgoing Cameco CEO slams Germany

It is a rare occasion when the boss of a multi-billion-dollar mining company like Saskatoon-based Cameco gives a tongue lashing to a government, but retiring Cameco CEO Jerry Grandey used part of his swansong earnings call to do just that. To Germany, no less. Criticising what he called a kneejerk reaction to the Japanese nuclear disaster in March, Grandey, the 30-year uranium mining veteran did not mince his words.

“So far the strident voices that oppose nuclear power have had limited effect on shaping public opinion and government policy," he said on a conference call to discuss the group's first quarter results. "The notable exception, of course, is Germany, where weak political leadership has made an illogical and emotional decision to close a number of older nuclear facilities."

He went on to highlight how many of Germany’s neighbours, including France, the Czech Republic and Poland, had decided to continue with their nuclear plans, as had India and China, albeit with a “pause” to apply lessons from the Fukushima-Daichi tragedy.

“The world of energy supply is not such a simple place,” Grandey said, pointing to the rapid urbanisation of countries like China, where energy demand is soaring – requiring a six-fold increase in power generation by 2020.

And while coal, oil and gas previously offered obvious sources of energy, the choice was not so cut-and-dried in a world that needs to cut its carbon-dioxide emissions. All told, Grandey expects the Japanese natural disasters will reduce the net gain in nuclear reactors by 2020 by just 10, and will reduce growth in uranium demand by just 4% a year.

“Very little has changed in the way we see the world,” he affirmed.

Grandey said that both public opinion and government policy had not been nearly as severely affected as by the Three Mile Island and Chernobyl nuclear disasters.

“Following these events, there were few leaders in science, academia or government who spoke in favour of nuclear power, or even dared to suggest it had a future in the global energy mix,” he said. “So far, the strident voices that oppose nuclear power have had limited effect on shaping public opinion and government policy.”

Saskatoon-based Cameco, the biggest uranium producer globally, on Friday posted net earnings $91 million CAD for the first three months of 2011, a 36% drop on the same period the previous year. This was mainly because of weaker performance in its fuel services and electricity businesses, while higher uranium prices offset a 23% production fall. Meanwhile, Cameco marketing and business development VP Ken Seitz said he expected long-term contract prices for the nuclear fuel would hold current levels of around $70/lb. Spot prices fell from over $60/lb before the Japanese disaster to $55,25 this week, in low trading volumes.

“We expect that the spread [between spot and term prices] will narrow. One’s going to move,” commented Seitz, suggesting that it might be spot prices. “Spot price volatility, absolutely, but we think that the term price will hold.”

Cameco gave up 0.5% on Friday in Toronto to trade at $27.52 CAD per share. Grandey retires at the end of the month to be replaced by Tim Gitzel.

Source: Cameco Earnings Call and Creamer Media’s Mining Weekly

India announces market-based trading schemes to encourage renewable energy

The Renewable Energy Certificate (RECs) and Perform, Achieve and Trade (PAT) schemes are India's most recent move to promote clean energy.

Renewable Energy Certificates

- The program which was launched in February 2011 allows clean energy producers to trade in Renewable Energy Certificates (REC).
- RECs can be bought by companies to meet statutory obligations to purchase a minimum level of renewable energy. One REC represents one megawatt-hour of energy generated from renewable sources, such as wind, solar or biomass, and remains valid for a year.
- A renewable energy producer will have two mutually exclusive options to sell electricity - either sell at a preferential tariff, or at normal rates and use the sale of RECs to help recoup investment costs.
- RECs are meant to be traded in power exchanges in two categories - solar and non-solar. Most of the traded projects under the scheme relate to wind power, although more solar power plants are expected to come on line because of government incentives.
- The price band for solar certificates has been fixed at $264-$374 USD per MW/h, and the band for wind and biomass certificates ranges from $33-$86 USD per unit.
- Major participants include Reliance Energy Trading Ltd, Tata Power, Manikaran Power, Shree Cement and Knowledge Infrastructure Systems Private Ltd.
- In the absence of a National Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO), RECs operate within rules crafted by states. Out of 28 states, only 21 states have such obligations, which varies from 2% to 14% of green power.

Perform, Achieve and Trade

- PAT is a market-based mechanism aimed at improving energy efficiency levels in large polluting industries in eight sectors: aluminium, cement, chlor-alkali, fertiliser, iron and steel, pulp and paper, textiles and thermal power.
- About 563 polluting units come under the eight categories, accounting for about 54 percent of the country's energy consumption.
- Identified firms would have to achieve their energy consumption target by 2014 when trading is set to begin after a three-year roll-out period.
- The tradeable energy saving certificates are called Escerts and these are based on a target reduction from the baseline. The number of Escerts issued depends upon the amount of energy saved during a target year.
- The state-run Bureau of Energy Efficiency is setting up the overall framework for the scheme and Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) will work as an implementation and monitoring agency.
- The programme, originally supposed to be launched in April 2011, has been delayed as the government and industry negotiate targets for firms.

This is an important global milestone for greenhouse gas emissions trading due to the size of the Indian market. Estimates put the market size for RECs at $1.2 USD billion and PAT market at $16 USD billion in India.

Finavera signs interconnection agreements with BC Hydro for 77 MW Wildmare and 47 MW Tumbler Ridge wind energy projects

Finavera and BC Hydro have signed a Standard Generator Interconnection Agreement ("SGIA") for the Tumbler Ridge Wind Energy Project and an Early Engineering and Procurement Agreement ("EEPA") for the Wildmare Wind Energy Project in the Canadian province of British Columbia.

The Standard Generator Interconnection Agreement signed for the Tumbler Ridge Wind Energy Project is the most critical document in the overall process for interconnecting wind power generation to the British Columbia transmission system. The SGIA identifies the responsibilities of both Finavera and BC Hydro and the detailed steps required to interconnect the Tumbler Ridge Wind Energy Project to the BC Hydro Transmission System. The Agreement also confirms the Commercial Operation Date of November, 2012 for the wind farm is achievable. In connection with the signing of the SGIA, Finavera has provided a $500,000.00 CAD Letter of Credit to BC Hydro as security.

For the Wildmare Wind Energy Project, the Company has signed an Early Engineering and Procurement Agreement with BC Hydro. The agreement allows BC Hydro to commence certain permitting, engineering and procurement activities in a timely manner in advance of a full SGIA being executed. The EEPA also assists Finavera in achieving the November, 2013 Commercial Operation Date for the Wildmare Wind Energy Project in advance of entering a full SGIA. The draft of the SGIA for the Project is currently under negotiation, and it is currently anticipated Finavera will enter into the final SGIA in summer of 2011. In connection with the signing of the EEPA, Finavera has provided a $1,000,000.00 CAD Letter of Credit to BC Hydro as security.

SaskPower announces winners of wind projects at ice rinks

As part of the Self-generated Electricity Demonstration Project for Municipal Ice Rinks SaskPower will be erecting four 50 kilowatt (kW) Seaforth AOC 15/50 wind turbines with a hub height of 30 meters at each of four municipal ice rink sites in the Saskatchewan towns of Central Butte, Eatonia, Shaunavon and Strasbourg. The four communities were among 79 who submitted proposals to take part in the project.

The four turbines will cost $2 million CAD. Capital costs for the demonstration project will be funded by SaskPower including purchase, installation and maintenance costs of the turbine for up to five years. After 5 years all costs will be the responsibility of the municipality including maintenance costs estimated to be $2,500 CAD per year plus travel. Local businesses will be sourced for transport, installation and maintenance during the turbine construction and operation phases.

The wind resources in Saskatchewan are usually at their greatest during the late fall and winter months, when the demand for rink operations are highest. Through grid correlation of wind power, rinks could benefit from self-generated electricity during the operating season, or other high-use times, and receive credit for excess power during periods of reduced demand and the off-season (net metering).

Public information meeting for Tall Wind Turbine Project at Saskatoon landfill

The public is invited to attend a public information meeting on June 7, 2011 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan to receive an update about plans for the proposed Tall Wind Turbine project at the Saskatoon landfill. Preliminary results from feasibility studies will be presented at the public information meeting on June 7, 2011 in Saskatoon. The project is proposed as part of a Green Energy Park at the City of Saskatoon landfill that would also include a proposed Landfill Gas and Turboexpander (in conjunction with SaskEnergy) Power Generation facilities. Attendees will be provided with information and hand-outs, and will hear a presentation on this initiative. Following the presentation, attendees will be invited to ask questions and/or provide comments through a facilitated question and answer session with an open microphone.

This is a very valuable and important project for the City of Saskatoon and people of Saskatchewan and I would encourage all interested parties to attend to express your support for this exciting project.

Additional information is available here:

www.saskatoon.ca/DEPARTMENTS/Utility%20Services/Saskatoon%20Light%20and%20Power/powergenerationinitiatives/Pages/ProposedTallWindTurbine.aspx

Gamesa gets $2 Billion USD order for 2000 MWs of wind projects in India

Gamesa Wind Turbines Pvt., the Indian unit of Spain's Gamesa Corporacion Tecnologica SA Tuesday received an order valued at $2 billion USD from the local unit of Caparo Energy Ltd. to build 2000 MW of wind power projects in India.

The first phase of the project of about 150 MW will be commissioned by 2012 and the final phase is expected to be completed by 2016.

Global wind energy majors such as Gamesa and Suzlon have turned to fast-growing economies where rising energy requirement is fueling investments in renewables. In India, high fuel prices and the nuclear crisis in Japan earlier this year have reignited interest in renewable energy sources.

"This order underlines the acceptance of wind energy as a viable and profitable solution to meet the increasing appetite among corporates for reducing their carbon footprint and meeting energy needs through sustainable energy sources," said Ramesh Kymal, chairman and managing director of Gamesa in India.

India had wind power capacity of more than 13000 MW as of March 31, 2010, according to the country's renewable energy ministry. India is the world's fifth-largest wind energy producer.

The Global Wind Energy Council, an industry body, expects that by 2020 the South Asian country would have total wind power capacity of at least 46000 MW and up to 65000 MW.

Brookfield Renewable selects Vestas to provide 102 MW in California

Toronto-based renewable energy developer, Brookfield Renewable Power Inc. has executed an agreement with Vestas to supply turbines with a total generating capacity of 102MW for Brookfield’s 102 MW wind energy project in Tehachapi, Kern County, California, USA.

Under the agreement, Vestas will deliver and commission 34 units of the V90-3MW turbine. Brookfield and Vestas also entered into a two year service and maintenance agreement.

The turbines are expected to be delivered in the second half of this year, with commissioning in late 2011.

Brookfield Renewable Power COO of US operations Kim Osmars said that completion of this wind energy project will bring Brookfield's North American wind portfolio to more than 600MW of installed capacity by the end of this year.

Brookfield Renewable Power Inc. in partnership with three First Nations (James Smith Cree Nation, Chakastaypasin Band of the Cree Nation and Cumberland 100A First Nation/Peter Chapman Band) are developing the 250 MW Pehonan run-of-river project in Saskatchewan.

Sprott Power Corp. to sell British Columbia hydro projects to unnamed buyer

Canadian renewable energy project-operator Sprott Power Corp. says it has signed a non-binding letter of intent to sell its northwestern British Columbia hydro projects. The company didn't name the buyer or the selling price.

The sale would include the 30 megawatt Anyox Creek Hydroelectric Project and other nearby hydro projects.

"Our counterparty is prepared to invest the time and efforts going forward to successfully develop (Anyox Creek)," said Jeff Jenner, president and CEO of Sprott Power, in a statement.

The sale is expected to close by June 30.

Sprott's assets currently include 28 wind turbines in Nova Scotia and Ontario.

Sprott Power Corp. currently has a near-term project under development in Saskatchewan with the provincial utility, SaskPower.

BHP Billiton relocating business unit from Vancouver to Saskatoon

BHP Billiton, the world’s largest mining company is relocating their Diamonds and Specialty Products business to Saskatoon over the coming months. The move will see 30 additional jobs added to the downtown Saskatoon office, where 69 people currently work. The business unit will manage the construction and operation of the Jansen potash mine, east of Saskatoon, which when operational will be the world’s largest potash mine. The Saskatoon business unit will also operate the Ekati Diamond Mine in the Northwest Territories.

A recent Conference Board of Canada Report forecasts that Saskatoon will lead economic growth in Canada in 2011. Saskatoon’s economy is expected to expand at 4.1% - significantly outpacing its nearest competitor, Calgary which is set to grow at 3.4% followed by Regina at 3.1%.

What does this mean for renewable energy developers in Saskatchewan?

Developers who are currently in the SaskPower RFP process for 175 MW should consider establishing a presence in Saskatchewan. The winner (or potentially winners if split into two 87.5 MW projects) of the RFP and their subcontractors will undoubtedly face problems recruiting qualified individuals to undertake the necessary work to construct the wind projects. Competition is already fierce for engineers and construction tradespersons in Saskatchewan and companies like BHP Billiton have significantly more financial resources than renewable energy developers to retain contractors for mining projects. The financial clout of mining companies in paying top dollar for contractors, consultants and equipment will also affect those renewable energy developers who win the SaskPower 50 MW annual lottery - the Green Options Partners Program.

The rapid expansion of the mining sector in Saskatchewan will continue to put significant demands on generation in the province and it is expected that in the future renewable energy will experience strong growth to fill part of the increasing demand from mining.

Wisconsin Bill to designate Wuskwatim hydro project in Northern Manitoba as a "renewable resource"

Electricity from Manitoba Hydro's Wuskwatim generating station would be designated as a "renewable resource" under a Wisconsin Bill, making it eligible to export power to the state.

The 200 MW Wuskwatim project is pioneering as it is being developed as an equity partnership between Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation and Manitoba Hydro. This is the first time Manitoba Hydro has entered into an equity partnership with a First Nations community on a generating station project of this size. If successful, it is expected that the Wuskwatim project will be a model for other First Nations renewable energy projects in Saskatchewan and British Columbia. The Wuskwatim project is scheduled for completion in 2012 at a cost of $1.3 billion CAD.

The new law in Wisconsin will designate large hydroelectric dams, including the Wuskwatim project in Manitoba, as a renewable energy source to help US power utilities meet newly introduced green-power mandates.

The Bill, expected to be passed in June 2011 would make Manitoba Hydro's new Wuskwatim dam the first in the province eligible for a "renewable resource" designation and opens the door for the Crown corporation to sell even more surplus power to Wisconsin.

Manitoba's power-export deal with Wisconsin, first announced in 2008, is worth $2 billion CAD to the province. Manitoba Hydro is working on a similar export deal with Minnesota that is worth almost $3 billion CAD.

Since 2000 Manitoba Hydro had export sales totalling $5.5 billion CAD. If the Wisconsin and Minnesota deals close and Wuskwatim is successfully commissioned with First Nations equity participation, Manitoba Hydro will have secured their position in North America as a true hydroelectric superpower.

Conergy launches solar PV module manufacturing in Canada

Hamburg, Germany based Conergy Group is launching its Conergy ON solar photovoltaic (PV) modules in the Canadian market and has entered a manufacturing agreement in the Canadian province of Ontario to ensure the solar modules are compliant with Ontario feed-in tariff requirements. Conergy Canada's head office is located in Edmonton, Alberta with a Western office in Calgary, Alberta.

Conergy has entered a two-year framework agreement with an undisclosed manufacturing partner in Ontario.

The Ontario solar PV market is expected to double in 2011.

“It is crucial to Conergy, that we can guarantee our customers a dependable volume of Conergy ON modules. The Conergy modules offer long-term performance and yield. They meet the strict Canadian funding guidelines for 2011. The results are obvious: With Conergy ON, we offer our customers the highest possible investment security with excellent return,” says Jared Donald, Head of Conergy Canada.

Andreas Wilsdorf, Chief Sales Officer, adds: “The solar market in Ontario is both challenging and promising. With a product and services portfolio, perfectly tuned to the local market, Conergy continues to strengthen its local position. Our involvement in the region does not stop at the Canadian border. In the USA, we also rely on proximity to our customer base – specifically with our new mounting systems factory in Sacramento, California. With our strong involvement in North America, our growth rate will increase in this important market.”

The full Press Release is here: http://www.conergy.ca/DesktopDefault.aspx/tabid-1368/2014_read-12170/

Nova Scotia Power hits 20% generation from renewables - more planned

Nova Scotia Power says it hit a milestone in electrical generation from wind energy last month.

The private utility, owned by Emera says wind turbine facilities in the province of Nova Scotia generated 250 megawatts of electricity on April 24, 2011 surpassing the previous mark of 235 megawatts set 10 days earlier.

The record represented 20 per cent of the province's electricity generated at midnight on that Sunday.

The earlier peak for wind generation happened at 8 a.m. on a Thursday and Nova Scotia Power says that also accounted for 20 per cent of the electricity generated at that time.

The province has proposed a legislative amendment requiring that 40 per cent of the province's energy needs come from renewable resources by 2020.

The company has said it has plans to increase the number of wind farm projects in the province and to take on more power from independent producers through feed-in tariffs in order to meet provincial targets.

There are more than 100 wind turbines operating in the province of Nova Scotia.

Source: The Canadian Press

3074 MW Lower Churchill hydro project likely to proceed given results of Canadian election

Last night the ruling centre-right Conservative party obtained a majority in the Canadian parliament while the centre-left NDP party surprised most Canadians and received a sufficient number of seats to make the NDP the number two party in Canada and the official opposition party.

During the campaign, NDP Leader Jack Layton stated that the NDP would back a loan guarantee for the first phase of the $6.2 billion CAD proposed 3074 MW Lower Churchill hydro project. The NDP also stated they would invest $375 million CAD in the Maritime Transmission Link project through the PPP Canada fund ($300 million CAD) and the Green Infrastructure Program ($75 million CAD).

During the campaign the Conservative government announced that if re-elected they will provide financial support for major clean energy infrastructure projects that have regional or national significance across Canada. “Our Government has a strong record of supporting clean energy projects in every region of the country,” Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative party Stephen Harper said. “As part of our low-tax plan for jobs and growth, we will consider financial support to projects that are of national or regional importance, have economic and financial merit and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We will do this in a way that is equitable across every region of Canada.” Prime Minister Harper noted that, with these criteria in mind, the Conservative Government will provide a loan guarantee or whatever other financial support is required to build the Lower Churchill hydro project in Newfoundland.

The governing Conservative party seems to prefer an approach which evaluates Federal government funding for clean energy projects on a case-by-case basis and the NDP seem to prefer a detailed national funding plan. In either case, both the governing party and the official opposition clearly and unequivocally support clean energy development in Canada which bodes very well for the future of proposed clean energy projects in Canada.

Paper Excellence likely to get biomass power purchase agreement (PPA) in Saskatchewan

This week forestry giant Paper Excellence, a subsidiary of Indonesia’s Sinar Mas, closed the deal with Domtar and the Saskatchewan provincial government to purchase the shuttered Prince Albert, Saskatchewan pulp mill.

A term of the agreement is that the SaskPower provides Paper Excellence with a power purchase agreement (PPA) for purchase of the surplus electricity to be produced from a biomass generator located at the mill.

$1.24 billion CAD carbon capture project approved in Saskatchewan

SaskPower will refurbish the coal-burning Boundary Dam Power Station with new equipment to extract one million tons of CO2 annually. Some of the captured gas will be pumped into aging oil wells to help increase production.

When complete the aging unit of the Boundary Dam Power Station near the city of Estevan will be one of the first commercial-scale carbon capture and storage facilities in the world.

Saskatchewan needs carbon capture to work on a large scale as the province is one of the highest emitters of greenhouse gases per capita of any jurisdiction in the world.

Construction is to begin immediately and the unit should be working by 2014, with the capacity to produce 110 megawatts of power.

SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., Hitachi and Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA)’s Cansolv division will contribute engineering and equipment for the project in Saskatchewan.

Canadian patent for renewable energy storage in heavy oil formations issued

Chicago-based PyroPhase Inc. was recently issued a Canadian patent for a method to store variable wind and solar PV power as heat in heavy oil formations, including oil sands and oil shale. This method can use variable and off-peak power because it stores radio-frequency energy as heat in heavy oil formations. It converts this resource to fuel for refineries in amounts 5 times the electric energy input.

Because this method uses power whenever it is available, and is instantly interruptible, it stabilizes the electric grid. It compensates for fluctuations in wind and solar power input and also in users demand. This reduces the need for spinning reserves, i.e. power plants that run all the time to meet sudden load changes, and thus waste fuel.

PyroPhase has noted on their website that they have plans to scale up and commercialize this technology and note that a 10,000 barrel/day plant could be built in 4 years at a cost in the order of $100 million USD, including $5 million USD for pilot development and $20 million USD to scale up to commercial module size.

Given that Saskatchewan has some of the most consistently high wind speeds in North America, the best solar PV potential in Canada, is already a global leader in carbon capture technology and has well-developed heavy oil extraction and refining industry, it would seem the obvious choice to pilot such technology.

First waste-to-energy plant in the Baltics secures funding

Nordic Investment Bank (NIB), the common international financial institution of the eight Nordic and Baltic countries and Finland’s Fortum have concluded a new loan agreement totalling 70 million EUR for building a waste-to-energy heat and power plant in the Lithuanian city of Klaipeda. Fortum’s new combined heat and power (CHP) plant in Klaipeda will be the first waste-to-energy plant in the Baltic countries. The plant will be fuelled by municipal solid waste, non-hazardous industrial waste and biomass. Its future output capacity is planned at approximately 60 MW of district heat and 20 MW of electricity.

The district heat produced at the plant will replace natural gas-based heat production capacity. Switching to combined heat and power production will increase the efficiency of the energy production and decrease the greenhouse gas emissions in the region. The plant will also help reduce the disposal of waste in the local landfill.

The CHP plant is being built by UAB Fortum Klaipeda, owned by Fortum and the local energy company Klaipedos Energija. The plant is expected to commence operations during the first quarter of 2013.

Innergex acquires Canadian solar PV project from Enfinity for $11.1 million CAD

Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. (TSX:INE) announced that they have entered into a share purchase agreement with Enfinity NV (“Enfinity”), to acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of the entity owning the rights to develop Enfinity’s 27 MW Stardale Solar PV project, located in Ontario, Canada. The consideration to be paid to Enfinity under the share purchase agreement is approximately $11.1 million CAD.

Construction of the Stardale project began in November 2010, and is expected to be completed by February 2012. The Stardale project is being developed on two parcels of land totalling 300 acres, located in East-Hawkesbury, in the Russell County of Ontario. The Stardale Project consists of a ground-mounted PV array system, which is to include a total of approximately 144,060 SolarWorld SW 230 polycrystalline PV
modules and 54 inverters, for a total installed capacity of 27 MWAC (33.2 MWDC).

The consideration payable pursuant to the share purchase agreement will be paid upon the project achieving certain milestones. The first payment in an amount of $1.5 million CAD will be paid at closing. The second payment for an amount equal to 50% of the remaining consideration will be payable upon the receipt by the Stardale Project of an executed long-term financing offer from financial institutions having terms and conditions not less favourable than certain thresholds established by the parties. The third payment (25% of the remaining consideration) will be payable at financial closing of that same financing and the last payment (25% of the remaining consideration) will be payable upon final completion of the Stardale Project.

Total development costs are expected to be approximately $140 million CAD. Innergex is a leading North American renewable energy developer based out of Longueuil, Québec and Enfinity is a global solar PV developer based out of Waregem, Belgium.

Pattern Energy and Samsung Renewable Energy acquire wind projects from Suncor Energy and Northland Power

Pattern Energy Group LP (Pattern) and Samsung Renewable Energy (Samsung), a subsidiary of Samsung C&T Corporation today announced that they have jointly acquired land from the Fargo Wind Project from Suncor Energy and a nearby wind development project from Northland Power in Ontario. The two development projects will be included in the larger South Kent Wind Farm, a 270 megawatt (MW) wind project located in the Regional Municipality of Chatham-Kent, which Pattern and Samsung are developing this year.

Pattern Energy’s major stakeholder is Riverstone Holdings, a New York-based private-equity firm. Pattern currently has 520 MW of wind energy in operation in the U.S. and in southern Manitoba, Canada.

"Pattern and Samsung will be able to accelerate the development of these projects by combining them with our nearby South Kent Wind Farm and its transmission connection," said Mike Garland, CEO of Pattern.

"Together with Pattern, we are making major progress on our goal to bring new sources of wind energy to Ontario," said Cheol-Woo Lee, Senior Executive Vice President of Samsung. "In addition to closing on these projects we are closing on thousands of acres in southwestern Ontario and the Bruce region for the development of more than 500 MW of wind power, which will use Ontario-made wind turbine components and towers from new Ontario factories in Tillsonburg (blades) and in Windsor (towers)."

South Korean, Samsung is an emerging global leader in renewable energy with projects in Canada, the United States, Costa Rica, Korea, France, Italy, Greece, and Turkey.

More renewable energy projects sought in Philippines

Following on my recent post regarding development opportunities in Mexico, Turkey, Indonesia and the Philippines, proponents of renewable energy in the Philippines today reiterated calls to aggressively increase power capacity from renewable energy sources.

Peregrino Fernandez of the Renewable Energy Developers' Caucus expressed serious concern over skyrocketing electricity rates due to continually rising oil prices and stated that "the rising cost of fossil fuel must be addressed by new paradigms and framework. Unless a carbon-free solution is introduced to our energy situation, we are merely applying a band-aid solution to our dependency on fossil fuels," said Fernandez, who is also president of the Montalban Methane Power Corporation.

Meanwhile, Cagayan Electric Power and Light Co. chairman Ramon Abaya underscored the need for renewable energy projects in the Philippines due to a lack of adequate local fuel reserves and stated that "government must look at an aggressive renewable energy option to address the Mindanao brownouts fast," he said.

Tetchie Capellan, president of the Philippine Solar Power Alliance, pointed out that the Department of Energy recently received several applications for solar PV power service contracts.

As of this week, according to Capellan, there are some 43 solar PV applications totalling 230 MW. Some of these projects are located in Mindanao and may be deployed within the year. "They [solar projects] are viable solutions to the expected energy crunch in Mindanao this year," Capellan said.

Joe Natividad, Sunwest Water and Electric Co. president and co-convenor of the RE Caucus, likewise urged the government to spur the development of the emerging renewable energy industry by reviewing the installation targets of major projects.

The department's indicative installation target for renewable energy is 830 MW (biomass, 250 MW, solar PV, 100 MW, wind, 220 MW, ocean, 10 MW and hydro at 250 MW) —which is 40 percent lower than the industry demand in the Philippines.

Developers, on the other hand, propose an installation target of 1.5 GW (442 MW for biomass, 420 MW for solar, 340 MW for wind, 30 MW for ocean and hydro at 250 MW).

Source: GMA News

EU catching up with Finland 21 years later and proposing carbon tax

The European Commission has issued a proposal to augment the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) with a system of carbon taxes on fuels and heating oil tied to greenhouse gas emissions. Under the EC proposal, the new tax regime would consist primarily of two components: a flat-rate carbon tax beginning at €20 per ton of carbon dioxide (CO2), rising in concert with EU carbon prices; and a component based on a fuel’s energy density rather than its volume, thereby rewarding efficiency. Under the new regime, ethanol and other energy sources regarded as renewable would be exempt from the carbon tax. It is anticipated the UK may oppose or veto the new carbon tax.

Finland was far ahead of the rest of the world and implemented a carbon tax already back in 1990 and was the first country to do so. Having worked in Finland for a number of years I can't say I heard much, if any, industry opposition to the carbon tax. After more than 20 years of the carbon tax, industry has clearly adapted. Has the carbon tax been a success in Finland? It is hard to say given Finland's decision to invest heavily in nuclear energy. Maybe part of the investment in nuclear was a response to the carbon tax? The carbon tax does seem to clearly have benefited the Finnish biomass and bioenergy industry, which is now a global leader in manufacturing, development and in utilizing biomass for energy. Almost 30% of the total primary energy consumption in Finland is met by bioenergy. That compares with 3% in Canada.

Wind power in Japan post-tsunami

Shortly after the catastrophic earthquake and resulting tsunami in Japan, I spoke with a friend in Tokyo, who thankfully was relatively unscathed, very much like the wind turbines in Japan which survived the earthquake and tsunami and are currently being utilized to boost power output to make up for energy shortages throughout the country. According to Yoshinori Ueda, leader of the International Committee of the Japan Wind Power Association, not a single member of the organization reported damage to its wind turbines during the earthquake and tsunami. Incredibly, my friend in Tokyo, who also works at one of the largest wind farm developers in Japan, had already heard that all of their wind turbines in Japan had survived the earthquake and tsunami.

Some wind turbines stopped temporarily due to an overall grid failure. However, most turbines remained fully operational, including Kamisu, a semi-offshore wind farm located approximately 300 kilometres from the epicenter of the earthquake.

That incredible stability led to publicly-traded, Japan Wind Development Co.'s share price gaining nearly 20% after the earthquake and tsunami. The market was clearly impressed by the technology in the face of such a destructive force of nature.

I anticipate that as a result of the proven stability of the Japanese wind farms and the continuing problems at Fukushima, in addition to Japan, wind farm development will likely increase in relatively wealthy but earthquake-prone countries such as Mexico, Turkey, Indonesia and the Philippines.

There is already talk about a feed-in-tariff in Japan and a number of developers have built and are working on projects in Mexico. Progressive developers seeking new opportunities will want to start acquiring sites for development in Turkey, Indonesia and the Philippines to get ahead of their competitors and capitalize on procurement processes in the future.

Carbon management and emissions trading

Having just arrived back from the Canadian Institute Carbon Management seminar in Vancouver, it seems clear that there is great uncertainty in Canada and around the world in regard to emissions trading. As many people know The Management and Reduction of Greenhouse Gases Act (the "Act") has passed all three readings in the provincial legislature and is set to receive Royal Assent and enter into force into Saskatchewan shortly. The Act in Saskatchewan will provide for an emissions trading system that roughly follows that in place in Alberta with a similar technology fund, auditing requirements and will import established Alberta protocols. Mining, oil, gas and independent power projects in Saskatchewan are moving forward with their development plans quickly and we are anticipating an increase in the number of large emitters in the future. Given Saskatchewan has nearly 40% of all the cultivated farmland in Canada, there are also opportunities for generation of zero-till offsets in Saskatchewan and potential trade with Alberta.

To my amazement, the emissions trading system in Saskatchewan was not even mentioned by speakers at the Carbon Management seminar and when the matter was raised there seemed to be little familiarity of the proposed Saskatchewan program. One has to wonder if we cannot even share information within Western Canada regarding emissions trading systems what chance the UN Climate Change talks have of accomplishing much in Durban, South Africa this fall? Given the obvious lack of leadership in Canada and at the federal level in the US, many are hopeful California will lead the way but that remains to be seen.

What does this mean for our emissions trading system in Saskatchewan? Like Alberta, we are going to have to go it alone with little or no support from the federal government, Ontario, Quebec or British Columbia. Alberta has been a good neighbour and has agreed to share information and best practices with Saskatchewan, which is certainly appreciated. Saskatchewan is also is taking steps to ensure that we remain basically harmonized with Alberta but can still join the Western Climate Initiative if an opportunity to materializes.

One thing that is certain however, is that drafting and executing the necessary agreements and managing the contracting process will be a challenge for Saskatchewan lawyers both in-house and in private practice who work with the provincial government, aggregators, landowners, mining, oil and gas companies and large emitters such as SaskPower, but it is a challenge I am looking forward to.

Landfill wind turbines receive approval in UK

Waste Recycling Group (WRG), one of the UK’s largest waste and resource management services companies, received approval to site two wind turbines at its closed Carnaby Landfill site.

The Carnaby Wind Energy Project will see the development of two turbines, each capable of generating up to 3MW of renewable electricity, which together are enough to power more than 2,500 homes. WRG anticipates that construction will commence early in 2012, and that the site will become operational by Summer 2012. The planning application followed a rigorous environmental assessment of the site and months of consultation with the local community.

WRG has six other landfill wind farms planned for development.

Vestas wins 150 MW supply contract in Brazil

Vestas Wind Systems A/S just received an order from Energisa S.A., a unit of Brazilian power provider Energisa Group, to provide 75 units of its 2 MW turbines for installation at five wind farms under development in the Rio Grande Norte area of Brazil. The five projects consist of the following: Ventos de Sao Miguelm, Renascenca I, Renascenca II, Renascenca III, and Renascenca IV. The contract includes the delivery, transportation, installation, and commissioning of the turbines, along with the provision of the VestasOnline supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system and a five-year service and maintenance agreement. Deliveries of the turbines are scheduled to begin during the first quarter of 2012, and the projects are expected to be operational by December 2012.

Canada's power grid needs $294 billion CAD investment in coming years

In a report entitled Canada’s Electricity Infrastructure: Building a Case for Investment just released by the Conference Board of Canada, Canada’s power grid will need an annual investment of approximately $15 billion CAD for the next 20 years ($300 000 000 000 Canadian dollars) in order to service old infrastructure and boost power generation from renewable sources like wind, solar and biomass energy.

According to the report, the largest portion of the recommended investment — $195.7 billion CAD — is required for power generation, with another $62.3 billion CAD required to improve the distribution system and $35.8 billion CAD for transmission.

The necessary investments in generation identified in the report include building new plants with renewable energy sources as well as refurbishing, repowering or retiring existing stations.

The report forecasts a continued reliance on both public and private investment in Canada's electrical grid, without recommending specific arrangements.

The full report can be downloaded here: http://www.conferenceboard.ca/.

Shear Wind completes 62.1 MW Glen Dhu wind project in Nova Scotia

Shear Wind Inc. ("Shear Wind") (TSX VENTURE:SWX) announced this morning that the Glen Dhu 62.1 MW wind facility in Nova Scotia (the "Glen Dhu Wind Farm"), has been completed and all turbines have been erected and commissioned. The Glen Dhu Wind Farm is the largest wind energy project in the province of Nova Scotia.

Shear Wind has an aggressive development strategy to advance projects in other provinces and has developed a pipeline of projects which it is awaiting the opportunity to construct. In addition to the Glen Dhu Wind Farm in Nova Scotia, Shear Wind is targeting three other near-term opportunities in New Brunswick, Saskatchewan and Alberta.

Founded in 2005, Shear Wind is headquartered in Halifax, Nova Scotia and is engaged in the exploration and development of renewable wind energy properties in Canada. Shear Wind is focused on building a strong company based on a secure and sustainable supply of clean wind energy. Shear Wind is committed to building shareholder value governed by environmental stewardship. Inveravante Inversiones Universales, S.L., an international corporation based in Spain, indirectly owns 62% of Shear Wind on a fully-diluted basis and 49% of Glen Dhu Wind Energy Limited Partnership through Genera Avante Holdings Canada Inc., following its investment in Shear Wind in November 2009.

Source: Shear Wind Press Release

California utilities must purchase 1/3 of electricity from renewable sources within 10 years

California lawmakers have approved a bill that would create the most ambitious renewable energy standards in the United States, giving utilities less than 10 years to receive one-third (1/3) of their power from wind, solar and other renewable sources. California is a leader in enacting progressive renewable energy legislation in North America and it is anticipated that other leading Canadian jurisdictions, such as Ontario and British Columbia, will consider similar standards in the future.

It is highly unlikely California can construct sufficient generation to come close to meeting demand and it is widely expected this new standard and those states and provinces that follow suit will drive renewable energy development throughout the Western half of North America in the coming years.

The State of California already purchases considerable renewable energy from hydro sources in British Columbia and demand is expected to continue to increase quickly. Progressive developers and utilities in California are now turning their attention to the vast and largely untapped wind resources of the prairies of Western Canada and the mid-western United States to help fill this demand in the future.

First Nations Power Authority & SaskPower sign MOU on power generation in Saskatchewan

The Government of Saskatchewan, SaskPower (the Crown utility) and the newly established First Nations Power Authority (FNPA) announced yesterday that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that will help the province’s First Nations advance their power generation projects.

The MOU sets out a partnership framework for a more streamlined process to help First Nations move their projects forward for consideration.

The provincial government was looking for opportunities to engage First Nations in developing power generation projects, which led to the formation of the First Nations Power Authority. Supported by various First Nations with existing or imminent power projects, the FNPA will be a non-profit, membership-based corporation. It is expected the FNPA will provide the framework for the first utility-scale community projects in the province.

Each of the 74 Saskatchewan First Nations will have the opportunity to hold membership in the First Nations Power Authority and participate in the governance of the organization through its board of directors.

“This MOU opens the door to significant opportunities for Saskatchewan First Nations to partner in the development of power generation projects,” FNPA Board Chair Ben Voss said. “This will result in a higher probability of viable, long-term sustainable First Nation economic development opportunities while helping SaskPower meet the province’s electricity supply needs.”

SaskPower is making a multi-year, multi-billion dollar investment to renew the province’s electricity system. The demand for electricity in the province is expected to increase by about 2.4 per cent annually over the next decade.

This is another clear indication that SaskPower does not intend on owning and operating all generation in the province in the future and continues to provide opportunities for independent power producers.

I expect that the signing of this MOU will further escalate activities of developers in the province in forming partnerships with First Nations for specific projects.

Additional information about the FNPA: www.fnpa.ca

Macquarie Capital and Femsa buy 396 MW wind farm in Mexico

Fomento Economico Mexicano SAB (Femsa), a beverage company in Latin America and Macquarie Capital agreed to buy a 396 MW wind farm in the Mexican state of Oaxaca from units of Preneal SA for 1.06 billion pesos ($89 million CAD).

Femsa will own a 45 percent stake in the project, while Macquarie will own 22.5 percent and the remainder will be held by two Mexican infrastructure funds managed by Macquarie. Power from the project will be sold to Femsa and project partner Heineken NV through a 20-year power purchase agreement.

The wind farm will use 132 Vestas wind turbines.

Anti-wind activists to appeal Ontario court decision on setbacks

Wind Concerns Ontario, an anti-wind activist organization, says it will appeal an Ontario Superior Court decision released earlier this month that ruled against the challenge to the province’s Green Energy Act regulations.

The anti-wind activists say Ontario’s environment ministry failed to properly assess the human health risks of turbines, which they believe emit low-frequency noise that causes sleeplessness and an array of other effects, ranging from psychiatric conditions to cardiovascular disease.

Ian Hanna, a Picton, Ontario resident, launched the court challenge after a number of wind farms were proposed near his home in Prince Edward County. His case was backed by the testimony of Dr. Bob McMurtry, a former medical school dean and special health advisor to the federal government. Dr. McMurtry also owns property in Prince Edward County.

The court ultimately decided that the ministry held “a full public consultation and a consideration of the views of interested parties.”

In a statement, the Ontario environment minister John Wilkinson said the rules for wind turbine siting “are based on peer-reviewed science.”

“While I can’t comment on the appeal, I can tell you that science-based evidence was and will be used to develop our regulations,” the statement read. “(The court) confirmed that developing the regulation included full public consultation, consideration of the views of interested parties, health reports, science-based evidence and expert opinions.”

It is unclear when the appeal on the case will be heard.

SaskPower announces 2011 Green Options Partners Program

In 2011 SaskPower will purchase up to 50 MW from medium-sized independent power producers. Up to 25 megawatts will be purchased from medium-scale wind generation projects and the remaining megawatts will be purchased from other environmentally preferred power production facilities.

http://www.saskpower.com/sustainable_growth/generate_move_power/green_options_partners/

$26 million CAD biodiesel incentive program introduced in Saskatchewan

A 5 year $26 million CAD provincial incentive program for renewable diesel production in Saskatchewan will commence in April 1, 2011. Biodiesel developers should take note that a mandatory minimum renewable fuel requirement for diesel fuel in Saskatchewan will follow 15 months later.

The program will provide a grant of 13 cents CAD per litre to eligible producers of renewable diesel. The renewable diesel must be manufactured from renewable materials such as off-grade canola and farm and forest biomass.

The program is to begin April 1, 2011 and will wind up in 2016. Saskatchewan's 2 percent renewable diesel mandate is scheduled to commence on July 1, 2012.

SaskCanola, the province's farmer-led canola development commission, hailed the grant program and mandate as recognizing "the significant importance of a growing Saskatchewan biofuel industry in which canola can be the leader," chairman Brett Halstead said in a separate release.

The federal Canadian government's 2 percent renewable content mandate for diesel and heating oil is expected to take effect July 1, 2011 as well.

Given the considerable incentives for biodiesel production and the mandatory minimum renewable fuel requirements to come into effect in the future, biodiesel project developers will be keen to move existing projects forward and develop greenfield projects in the province.

SaskPower to build $130 million CAD switiching and transmission projects in Saskatchewan

SaskPower, the provincial utility in the province of Saskatchewan is proposing $130 million CAD worth of electricity construction projects in the Saskatoon area to fill part of the growing demand for electricity from the booming potash industry.

The proposed projects include a switching station north of Saskatoon, another switching station near the bedroom community of the town of Aberdeen and a transmission line connecting the two new stations to each other, to Saskatoon and to the existing Wolverine switching station.

Algonquin Power to buy Kineticor wind farms in Saskatchewan

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. ("APUC") just announced this morning that it has executed an asset purchase agreement (the "Agreement") with Kineticor Renewables Inc. ("Kineticor"), to acquire all of the assets related to two proposed adjacent 10 MW wind energy development projects (the "Projects") in Saskatchewan.

Upon SaskPower's approval and execution of the PPAs, Kineticor will assign the PPAs to Algonquin Power Co. ("APCo"), APUC's electric generation subsidiary. The Projects will be developed with support from Kineticor during the development phase, which is expected to be completed in late 2013.

While equipment selection and construction details remain to be finalized, it is expected that the capital cost to construct the Projects will be approximately $55-$60 million, inclusive of acquisition costs. The first year PPA rate is set at $101.98 per MW-hr for the first full year of operations, which APCo expects to occur in 2014, with an annual escalation provision of 2% over the expected 20 year term.

The Projects are to be constructed near Morse, Saskatchewan, approximately 180 km west of Regina and 400 km west of the Phase I Red Lily Wind Project already owned by APUC. It is contemplated that the Projects will be situated on 1,120 acres of private lands, with additional land under lease or option in order to facilitate future expansion of the Projects.

"We are very pleased that we are able to continue to grow our wind energy footprint in the province of Saskatchewan with this latest acquisition", commented Ian Robertson, Chief Executive Officer of APUC. "Saskatchewan has one of the best wind regimes in Canada which will once again contribute to our growing portfolio of successful wind energy projects and reinforce our strategic focus on renewable energy investment."

Source: Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. Press Release dated March 21, 2011

South Africa plans large expansion of renewable energy

South Africa's government has approved a sweeping plan to increase renewable energy generation. The plan lowers South Africa's overwhelming reliance on coal, calling for renewable energy for an astounding 42 percent of new power projects. The government also approved draft legislation to buy energy from private power producers, which the state wants to supply nearly a third of new electricity generation.

"It is intended to make sure that we allow for participation by the independent power producers," said Energy Minister Dipuo Peters.

"We have a policy that says 30 percent of new power generation in the country must be generated by independent power producers. We need a structure or an institution that can facilitate that."

Having worked on development of wind sites in Namibia, I expect that NamPower (the state utility in Namibia) will follow suit with a similar plan. Eskom (the state utility in South Africa) has said in the past that they would purchase energy, if available, from bordering Namibia so I expect that there will be worldwide interest from renewable energy developers in both South Africa and Namibia.

The future of nuclear

Stocks for wind and solar energy producers jump as investors speculate that demand for renewable power will surge in response to the unfolding Japanese nuclear situation. The German solar-panel maker, Solarworld, leads the way advancing 32 percent.

The “nuclear renaissance” may taper off as a result of events in Japan but it is clear that nuclear energy will continue to be an extremely important energy source for baseload generation. Wind and solar are intermittent technologies and require continuous generation to fill gaps in supply when wind or sun is not available. The current options for baseload generation are coal, natural gas or nuclear and nuclear is the only source which does not generate greenhouse gas emissions and has a relatively abundant fuel source, uranium.

The Olkiluoto nuclear project in Finland had numerous problems most of which were related to alleged unreasonable and overly onerous safety requirements. The Finnish regulators insisted that Areva and its construction subcontractors meet (and in some cases exceed) Finnish safety standards. This caused problems because Olkiluoto was a turnkey contract with rigid payment provisions and project milestones. In hindsight, the hard-nosed and uncompromising approach of the Finnish regulator was the right approach even if the project ended up in arbitration over payments.

I anticipate that the situation in Japan will stabilize and countries like China, India and South Korea will quietly continue with their planned nuclear expansions albeit with an increased emphasis on safety. Developers of nuclear projects will have to adjust to an environment where the regulator exercises complete and unchallenged authority in all matters, including safety, throughout the project and developers will have no other option than to comply with whatever the demands of the regulator may be. This will be a change from the past few years where demand for nuclear energy was so great, developers had some scope to negotiate prices, timelines and other project details. In any case, I cannot envision a situation in the near future, particularly in countries like China and India, where nuclear was not a critical pillar of development of the country even in light of the safety risks and the unfolding situation in Japan.

144 MW Dokie wind project comes online in British Columbia

Plutonic Power Corporation and GE Energy Financial Services have achieved commercial operations at the 144 MW Dokie Wind project in the northeast Peace River region of the Canadian province. "By combining GE's experience as an energy investor and Plutonic's development skills, and by consistently reaching out to impacted stakeholders, we were able to turn a once-challenged project into what is now British Columbia's largest operating wind farm," says GE's Mark Tonner.

Renewable developers in British Columbia continue to escalate site acquisition and development activities in reaction to BC Hydro's increase in rates in their standing offer program and anticipated feed-in-tariff.

Saskatchewan signs MoU on energy with Gujarat

The Indian state of Gujarat signed four memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with the province of Saskatchewan on March 14, 2011 in Mumbai. One of the MoUs was signed between Saskatchewan and Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation (GMDC) for the exchange of scientific, technical and regulatory information in the field of energy. Possible areas of cooperation include wind farm development, solar/PV development as well as ethanol and canola biodiesel production.

Utility-scale biomass project in Saskatchewan announced

Multinational paper giant, Paper Excellence, will purchase the Prince Albert, Saskatchewan pulp mill from Domtar and invest $200 million CAD to re-open the facility. As part of the agreement SaskPower (the electrical utility in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan) will purchase surplus electricity from a biomass power facility to be incorporated into the mill. That agreement calls for the purchase of biomass power at a price consistent with rates charged for this kind of project. Additional details are not available about the biomass project but it is certain to be an exciting project as it will be one of the first large utility-scale biomass projects in Western Canada. The deal was just announced this morning and is expected to close in the second quarter of 2011.

Single energy market in EU

It has been almost 15 years in the making but it looks as if the European Union (EU)EU will establish a single energy market. The EU is the world's largest and most developed regional energy market with 500 million people and 20 million companies. The goal of the third EU energy package is to set up a single energy market and separate the operation of gas pipelines and electricity networks from the business of providing gas or generating power.

On Thursday the EU inaugurated its new energy regulators' office, the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) in Slovenia as new legislation for liberalising the EU's internal energy market came into force. ACER's main tasks will be to develop guidelines for harmonising national grid codes, solving conflicts between regulators, supervising the work of the European Networks of Transmission System Operators and advising the EU's executive Commission on energy market issues.

Last month European leaders launched a trillion-euro bid to slash dependency on Middle East oil and Russian gas, clearing the way to place renewable energy and nuclear power at the centre of the EU's energy requirements.

Court upholds wind turbine setbacks - anti-wind activists lose court challenge

The Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruled that the province of Ontario acted properly in setting regulations for the placement of wind turbines and rejected the application from anti-wind activists which sought to strike down regulations governing how close turbines can be erected to dwellings.

Turbines must be located at least 550 meters from dwellings in Ontario but the anti-wind activists had argued that the province had no "scientific basis" for setting that standard.

The court ruled that the province’s environment department had followed due process in creating the setback, that there was public consultation, and that the government considered “science-based evidence” in making its decision.

This court ruling is good news for all developers in Canada who now have binding judicial precedent that a 550 meter setback is adequate.

Algonquin announces commercial operation of Red Lily Wind Project in Saskatchewan

Renewable energy development continues to power forward in wind-resource rich Saskatchewan with Canadian developer, Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. ("Algonquin") announcing the achievement of commercial operation ("Commercial Operation") of the 26.4 MW Phase I Red Lily Wind Project ("Red Lily I") in south-eastern Saskatchewan pursuant to the Power Purchase Agreement ("PPA") with SaskPower. The project was completed ahead of schedule and is now successfully generating renewable power.

Red Lily I consists of 16 Vestas V82 wind turbine generators. The total capital cost of the facility was approximately $69 million CAD. Red Lily I enjoys an excellent wind resource, which under the power purchase agreement with SaskPower is expected to generate 2011 revenues of $7.5 million CAD and full year 2012 revenues of $8 million CAD. The power purchase agreement with SaskPower is for a 25 year term, with an annual inflation adjustment applied throughout the term.

Algonquin's commitment in Red Lily I has been structured initially as a debt investment with total returns to Algonquin being a combination of interest payments and fees. Algonquin retains an option to formally exchange its debt investment for a 75% equity interest in the entity which owns the facility in 2016.

In addition to Red Lily I, additional land rights have been secured for a second phase of the project, which, should it proceed, would provide an additional 106 MW of generating capacity in Saskatchewan.

The full Press Release is available on Algonquin's website: http://www.algonquinpower.com/newsroom/2011.asp#FEB28-2011

In addition to potash, uranium, oil, gas, coal, diamonds and gold I think it's time to add wind to the growing list of world-class natural resources in Saskatchewan.


I wonder which major PV developer will be the first to realize that Saskatchewan also has the richest PV resource in Canada? The PV potential in Saskatchewan far exceeds that in Ontario where 400 MW of PV has been already awarded contracts under the Ontario FIT.

Wind power battery storage project in Saskatchewan gets federal funding

A wind turbine and battery storage system project located on the Cowessess First Nation in Saskatchewan is set to receive $2.79 million CAD as part of a $64 million CAD Canadian government investment from the Clean Energy Fund announced on Sunday February 27, 2011.

The wind turbine and a battery storage system will be installed on the Cowessess First Nation's land to demonstrate how intermittent wind power can be harnessed and stored to provide constant continuous energy.

Chief Lerat of Cowessess said they have a strong interest in preserving the environment and wind is a major natural resource on First Nations land. The hope is that other First Nations reserves in Saskatchewan will follow with wind farm developments if this program is successful.

Yesterday, the Canadian Federal government also announced a commitment of $9.2 million CAD for the Digby wind farm in Nova Scotia and $11.2 million CAD to the University of British Columbia to undertake a clean heat and power project as well as funding for an ethanol plant in Varennes, Quebec.

Gamesa 2010 financial information positive

Gamesa, the Spanish wind turbine manufacturer and developer released financial information noting the following:

- Gamesa generated 472 million euro in net free cash flow in 2010;
- The backlog for delivery in 2011 amounts to 1,414 MW (+25%) and covers 48% of the wind turbine sales guidance for the year;
- International markets (such as Canada) accounted for 93% of the MW sold in 2010;
- The wind farm development and sale business revived and contributed 10 million euro in EBIT in the second half of the year.

Gamesa has recently been moving aggressively into the Canadian market with an establishment of an office in Ontario.

Ontario FIT awards 2nd round of contracts for 872 MW

The Ontario feed-in-tariff (FIT) program yesterday announced new contracts which include 257 MW of solar/PV projects and 615 MW of wind projects, bringing the total amount awarded under the FIT program to 1,570 MW. There were 4 wind farm projects, 1 hydro project and 35 solar/PV projects. The complete list is available here: http://fit.powerauthority.on.ca/Storage/103/11216_FIT_Contract_Awards_-_Final_List_-_February_24%2C_2011.pdf

TransAlta seeking to purchase renewable power assets

CEO Steve Snyder told Bloomberg that TransAlta has a strong interest in buying power assets in Canada and the U.S. and that TransAlta wants to add renewable power, including wind turbines, in Canada as well as power plants on the west coast of the U.S. and Canada. “We have a strong interest in expanding our fleet profitably,” Snyder was quoted as saying.

TransAlta Corp. is one of Canada’s largest wind power operators and added 189 MW of new wind power generation as well as a hydro plant in British Columbia in 2010.

British Columbia feed-in-tariff (FIT) could be launched in autumn 2011

At the BC Hydro Standing Offer Program changes and process review webcast and telephone conference held on February 23, 2011, BC Hydro noted that the British Columbia (BC) provincial government is currently working on their feed-in-tariff (FIT) regulation which they anticipate to issue in spring 2011. The launch of the FIT program is expected within 6 months after the regulation is issued. According to this timeline the FIT could be introduced in fall 2011. BC Hydro notes that wind will be part of the FIT but it will be in "non-interconnected areas".

Yukon Energy seeking renewable energy for gold mine

Yukon Energy will need more renewable energy if it wants to supply electrcity to a proposed gold mine in the Yukon Territory of Northern Canada without relying on diesel generation.

Yukon Energy's President, David Morrison stated that the publicly owned utility is in the process of identifying more sources of renewable energy in time to support Victoria Gold Corp.’s Eagle Gold project north of Mayo at Dublin Gulch in the Yukon Territory.

Yukon Energy and Victoria Gold Corp. signed a letter of intent earlier this month committing themselves to negotiating a PPA to supply the Eagle project by early 2014 or sooner.

Yukon Energy is currently determining how much more renewable energy can be added into the grid, including a large wind project on Ferry Hill overlooking Stewart Crossing. There is also ongoing research into geothermal projects involving the use of underground water resources that may be hot enough to drive steam turbines.

SaskPower disappoints stakeholders with renewable energy generation

"Stakeholders expressed a high level of dissatisfaction with SaskPower and what was described as a 'wait and see' approach to climate change. Stakeholders highlighted multiple examples of how SaskPower has fallen behind its peer group in renewable power generation. There is a strong desire from participants for SaskPower to pursue a new business model that accommodates new generation options."

- excerpts from the Summary of Stakeholder Consultations

The Saskatchewan government released their Summary of Stakeholder Consultations on the Saskatchewan Climate Change Regulations today. The Regulations will implement the new Management and Reduction of Greenhouse Gases and Adaptation to Climate Change Act in Saskatchewan.

Stakeholders provided examples of where SaskPower policies were a barrier to cogeneration opportunities that would lower emissions and support economic development.

Some of the noteworthy recommendations by stakeholders were:

- establishment of a renewable energy standard and strategy that would result in SaskPower adopting alternative energy options such as solar, biomass, wind, geothermal and others as a component of its base load generation capacity;
- pursuit of open and effective renewable energy sources and independent power generations would allow individuals and businesses to generate their own electricity and to sell the surplus power to SaskPower;
- engagement in cogeneration opportunities in rural and urban areas as a means to generate greener electricity and to support economic development. The consultation team was made aware of several cogeneration opportunities that had either been declined by SaskPower or "are outside of the existing SaskPower policies to be considered";
- restructuring of SaskPower policy frameworks to accommodate a wider range of large and small scale generation and co-generation options.

The full Summary is available at: http://www.environment.gov.sk.ca/stakeholderconsultations

BC Hydro Standing Offer Program revised in British Columbia

BC Hydro, the third largest utility in Canada, owned and operated by the provincial government in the Western Canadian province of British Columbia has revised its Standing Offer Program (BC SOP) for smaller-scale renewable energy projects, implementing all of the recommendations coming out of a review of the original rules.

Important changes in the BC SOP include increasing the maximum project size to 15 MW and increasing the program's fixed prices by 14-29%. The price increase varies from $12/MWh to $22/MWh depending on the region, with the price increases being greater for those regions further away from the Lower Mainland (greater Vancouver area). These regions benefit from a reduced cost estimate for transmitting energy to the Lower Mainland load centre.

Peak pricing is $103.69/MWh in the Lower Mainland area with a low of $94.86/MWh in the Peace Region.

There will be no differential pricing based on technology.

BC Hydro estimates that the new pricing will attract a cumulative total of approximately 1,000 gigawatt hours (GWh) per year of energy over two years under the BC SOP.

The BC SOP will continue with no quota or cap on development - start acquiring your sites for development in BC now before it's too late...

Ontario FIT suspends off-shore wind applications

In an anticipated move, the government in the Canadian province of Ontario suspended current off-shore wind applications under its FIT program to buy power generated by renewable sources.

The Ontario FIT offers North America's most comprehensive and lucrative rates for electricity generated from solar/PV, wind, water and biomass,

Only one off-shore wind project by developer Windstream Energy Inc. has been approved since the Ontario FIT came into effect in 2009. The FIT will accept no new applications for off-shore projects.

However, the moratorium will have no effect on applications for on-shore wind power projects.

Given the huge potential for utility-scale on-shore wind energy in provinces like Saskatchewan with a far superior wind regime to Ontario and much lower population densities, off-shore wind projects in the Great Lakes in Ontario made little financial sense. The Ontario provincial government has now recognized this and revised their FIT accordingly.

For off-shore wind developers, there are excellent opportunities for development in the Western Canadian province of British Columbia in the Pacific ocean and in the Eastern provinces of Newfoundland & Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island in the Atlantic ocean.

Finland-based Talvivaara and Saskatoon-based Cameco sign uranium off-take agreeement

The agreement between Cameco and Talvivaara will certainly broaden the already significant relationship Cameco has with Finnish utilities, the Finnish government and regulators and private Finnish mining companies and electricty generators.

According to a February 8, 2011 Press Release Cameco is to provide an upfront investment of up to $60 million USD to cover the construction costs of a uranium extraction circuit in Finland. Talvivaara will repay the investment through deliveries of uranium concentrate during the initial years of the agreement. Once the capital sum has been repaid all uranium concentrate produced thereafter until December 31, 2027 will be bought by Cameco at a price based on market prices at the time of delivery. The annual uranium production is estimated at 350tU (ca. 770,000 pounds), corresponding to approximately 410t (900,000 pounds) of yellow cake (UO4).

Cameco is already very active in Finland and has been for a number of years. Cameco currently supplies uranium fuel to generate clean electricity for Finnish utilities and their customers. Finland produces approximately one-third of its domestic electricity through nuclear power. Finland has four existing reactors operated by two Finnish companies. A fifth reactor is currently under construction in Finland and two more are planned for the future.

Cameco will provide technical assistance to Talvivaara in the design, construction, commissioning and operation of the uranium extraction circuit to be constructed at the Sotkamo mine. Talvivaara plans to start construction of the uranium extraction circuit in the coming months and complete it in 2012.

Talvivaara is a Finland-based miner producing base metals with its primary focus on nickel and zinc deposits in Finland using a technology known as bioheapleaching to extract metals out of ore. Talvivaara is listed on the London Stock Exchange Main Market and NASDAQ OMX Helsinki and is included in the FTSE 250 Index.

Cameco Corporation is one of the world's largest suppliers of uranium and trades on the TSX and New York Stock Exchange.

SaskEnergy announces waste heat recovery project in Saskatchewan

SaskEnergy, the provincially owned, natural gas distribution company in the province of Saskatchewan have partnered with Found Energy and Innovative Steam Technologies to capture the waste heat of compressor station engines and convert it to useable electricity. SaskEnergy's aim is to produce more renewable energy than it consumes by 2015.

The $5.7 million CAD waste heat recovery project at the Rosetown and Coleville compressor
stations will capture heat normally vented to the atmosphere through the compressor engines‟ exhaust and convert that energy into electricity which will then be sold back to the SaskPower grid.

Waste heat recovery technology is rapidly developing in Western Canada and it is expected this project will break new ground for gas distribution companies.

138 MW Manitoba wind farm comes online

The first group of WTGs in the Canadian province of Manitoba's $345 million, 138 MW St. Joseph wind farm have commenced feeding power to the grid.

"Together we are creating a local energy source that will benefit the St. Joseph area and its residents including the generation of millions of dollars of municipal revenues over the life of the project," states Mike Garland, CEO of Pattern Energy, owner of the project.

The total investment required for the St. Joseph wind farm is projected to $345 million CAD. Pattern Energy will also pay $38 million CAD in total to the landowners in the rural municipalities of Rhineland and Montcalm. The wind farm occupies agricultural land of 125 square kilometers owned by private parties in the two municipalities.

SaskPower, are you listening? 143 MW of PV installed in Ontario in 2010

During the first full year under the FIT rates, the province of Ontario installed 143MW solar PV in 2010. This makes Ontario the second-largest PV market in North America after California.

A quick glance at the PV Potential Map (https://glfc.cfsnet.nfis.org/mapserver/pv/index_e.php) published by the Canadian Federal government clearly shows the province of Ontario has what can only be considered an extremely low potential when compared with the province of Saskatchewan, which has a significantly higher potential for solar PV.

This begs the question - why is SaskPower paying such low rates under their Green Options Partners Program? SaskPower should be following Ontario's lead and paying reasonable prices for solar PV generation, which could revolutionize the energy sector in Saskatchewan, as happened in Ontario. Ontario is now a Canadian renewable energy powerhouse even though the wind and solar resources in Ontario are far below that in Saskatchewan.

Japan & Saskatchewan team up on clean coal and carbon capture

The province of Saskatchewan and Japan have executed an agreement to cooperate on clean coal and carbon capture and storage.

The province and the Japan Coal Energy Center — which represents more than 100 companies — have signed an MOU outlining cooperation on the technologies.

The MOU sets the stage for information exchanges and research projects involving scientists and companies in both jurisdictions which could lead to Japanese investment in Saskatchewan carbon capture and storage projects.

Ontario Green Energy Act under attack

Wind power opponents in the Canadian province of Ontario will soon learn if they have overcome procedural hurdles to arguing a divisional court should strike down a key provision of Ontario's very successful Green Energy Act.

The hearing on Monday Janury 24, 2011 was initally spent considering issues of jurisdiction with judges questioning counsel if the court was the right place to challenge whether human health might be harmed by wind turbines.

Counsel for Ontario's Attorney General argued any challenge must go to a tribunal set up by the provincial Environment Ministry.

However, a lawyer representing wind power opponent Ian Hanna said the tribunal can only hear appeals over specific wind projects - only the court could strike down the specific regulation itself, a move that might freeze all wind development in Ontario.

A reply from the court is expected later today with most opinion-makers under the impression that Mr. Hanna is wasting the court's time and will not be successful in what are seen to be absurb claims.

Wind power is the star in Ontario's renewable energy plan. The government wants to double its output this year and ramp it up to provide 10% of energy output over 20 years.

Japan's Marubeni buys stake in Canada wind farm

Marubeni Corp has bought a 49 percent stake in a wind farm being built in the Canadian province of Ontario, the Japanese trading house said on Tuesday.

Marubeni bought the stake in the Raleigh Wind Energy Center, a 78-megawatt wind energy project located in southwestern Ontario, from Invenergy, a privately owned, Chicago-based company.

No price was given for the transaction.

Invenergy, which owns and develops renewable energy projects in North America and Europe, will retain the remaining 51 percent in the wind farm and manage it.

The project, which has a 20-year power purchase contract from the Ontario Power Authority, is expected to start commercial production next month.

"As part of its growth strategy, Marubeni is seeking to increase its investment in the North American power sector and will continue to pursue high quality investment opportunities in the United States and Canada," Marubeni said in a statement.

SaskPower plans ice rink pilot wind project

SaskPower has launched a demonstration project to explore the economic and environmental benefits of self-generated power projects at municipal ice rinks. The utility plans to install wind turbines at two rinks to determine if they could help offset power bills. "There's a lot of interest in customer-generated power right now and this demonstration project will help us explore the many variables involved," says CEO Robert Watson.

See http://www.saskpower.com/news_publications/news_releases/?p=1117#more-1117 for additional information.

Supreme Court of Canada clarifies duty to consult First Nations on hydro project

The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that First Nations communities must show a causal relationship between a government action and a potentially adverse effect on their interests, for a duty to consult to arise.

The ruling, Rio Tinto Alcan v. Carrier Sekani Tribal Council, relates to a 2007 energy purchase agreement between BC Hydro and Rio Tinto Alcan - the long-time operator of the 60 year-old Kenney Dam project in the Nechako River, in north-west British Columbia.

Alcan (as it was then known) obtained approval to build the dam from the provincial government in the 1950s, so it could produce power for the smelting of aluminium.

Around 60 years after the dam was built, the Carrier Sekani Tribal Council, a group representing eight aboriginal communities in the province, claimed that it had never been consulted on the dam’s construction and asserted a right of consultation in regards to the 2007 agreement.

In its arguments, the tribal council said the dam had affected the amount and timing of water flows into the Nechako River, impacting on fisheries and lands now claimed by the communities it represents.

The British Columbia Utilities Commission considered the matter first. After establishing that it had the power to consider the adequacy of the Crown’s consultation process, the regulator ruled that the 2007 agreement would have no impact on existing water levels in the Nechako River and no new adverse impact on the aboriginal communities’ rights.

Upholding the regulator’s decision, the Supreme Court ruled that to trigger the duty of consultation, aboriginal groups must show “a causal relationship between the proposed government conduct or decision and a potential for adverse impacts on pending claims or rights.”

“Past wrongs, including breaches of the duty to consult, do not suffice,” the court clarified.

The court added that a past or continuing breach of a claim or right would only trigger a duty to consult if the decision at issue caused a “new adverse effect”.

The court agreed that the British Columbia Utilities Commission had jurisdiction to consider the adequacy of Crown consultation in the matters brought before it – but it did not have power under the Utilities Commission Act, to engage in consultations itself to carry out the duty.

Instead, BC Hydro, as a Crown corporation, was responsible for the duty to consult, according to the court.

Southwest Alberta transmission line in service

A new 90-kilometre transmission line between Pincher Creek and Lethbridge Alberta is now in service, providing transfer capacity for another 1000 MW of wind energy. "Albertans tells us that increasing access to more renewable energy is important, and we are proud to provide that connection," says Scott Thon, CEO of Altalink, which built and will operate the line.

Green energy park in Saskatoon continues to move forward

Saskatoon Light & Power, an electric utility in the City of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan stated at a public meeting last night that they hope to begin construction on a green energy park at the city Landfill in summer 2011.

Kevin Hudson, an engineer with Saskatoon Light & Power noted that the response was supportive overall.

The next step is to take a final report to City Council for approval which will happen in December 2010.

The plans include a methane gas recovery project, a turboexpander project, which takes energy from excess heat, and a tall wind turbine project which was launched last April.

Saskatoon Light & Power is in a unique position to become a renewable energy leader in a province otherwise controlled by SaskPower, the monopoly provincial utility and the green energy park is certainly an important project in this regard.