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Welcome 2018 and why not start it with good news, such as: "that the launch of the largest solar project in western Canada has begun". A solar installation that has cost $ 30 million dollars and will energizes 3,000 homes in southeastern Alberta.
The solar field is located directly adjacent to the transcanadian highway, outside the city of Brooks, and is made up of 30 hectares full of solar panels.
The property has an oil pump, natural gas pipelines, an agricultural irrigation ditch and internet fiber optic cable. The shared uses in this property between oil, gas, fiber optics, agricultural irrigation, is a fantastic showcase for the development of diverse resources in Alberta lands.
It should be noted that the Brooks project was launched last week, being the first utility-scale solar installation in western Canada, far exceeding any other solar project currently in operation.
The Brooks solar array may be the largest in western Canada at this time, but much larger projects are already underway in the same region due to sunny weather and proximity to several huge transmission lines.
The solar project had been under construction for more than five years, although the actual construction of the installation took only seven months.
This is the first of several renewable energy projects to be built as the province progresses in the global trend towards reducing its carbon footprint and moves away from coal plants.
With this news you can see how Alberta prepares to embark on a revolution of renewable energy. Certainly some renewable energies already exist in the province, but the sector is about to grow substantially.
This month, the provincial government of the NDP announced alliances with three companies to develop four wind farms, valued at $ 1 billion. The projects in question will open in 2019.
Collectively, it is expected that around $ 50 billion will be invested in the development of renewable energy in Alberta and Saskatchewan before 2030, as both provinces struggle to achieve the goals of how much electricity grid is powered by wind, solar and hydroelectric power.
In addition to this we must add that the diversification of energy production fortunately brings with it the creation of new job opportunities for the inhabitants of the area.
Climate factor
It is important to note that in case of snow, energy production is undoubtedly lost, but the good news is that in this part of the world, in southeast Alberta, it does not snow as much compared to many other jurisdictions.
In the same way the snow is light so it dissipates with the winds that we have, as well as with the sunny days once the sun begins to shine, the snow melts rather quickly.
The project cost $ 30 million and the developers received $ 15 million in funds from the previous progressive conservative government through Alberta Emissions Reduction.
The offers were made through an auction in order to choose renewable energy projects, which turned out to be so attractive that the Alberta government decided to back proposals to build "600 megawatts" of new generation, a "50 percent more than your goal of 400 MW. "
The government said on Wednesday it had chosen three companies that will spend close to one billion dollars to build four wind power projects in southern Alberta capable of generating enough power for 255,000 homes.
The winning offers came from Capital Power based in Edmonton and are the following: 1- A 201 MW project, EDP Renovables based in Lisbon, Portugal. 2- A 248 MW project and Enel Energia Verde Canada, 3- A division of a world energy company based in Rome, with projects of 115 MW and 31 MW.
On the subject, the honorable premier Rachel Notley stated that: "the average 3.7 cents for each kilowatt-hour offered by the three companies is the lowest electricity price in Canada and a good omen for similar future auctions".
Let's not forget that the province wants to add up to 5,000 megawatts of renewable energy through private sector investments of around $ 10 billion by 2030.
To conclude, I would like to conclude by recalling that the detractors of the project predicted that the price of this renewable energy would probably reach high, above eight cents a kilowatt-hour. "However, the process was so competitive that many companies wanted to invest what allowed to obtain a 20-year price of 3.7 cents per kilowatt-hour. "
My dear reader does not think that these are fantastic news, in my opinion I definitely feel that it is an exceptional way to start the new year 2018.