Laying the track for Saskatchewan’s clean energy future
There’s no question, 2023 is a very different world than 1963.
But even back then, when the subject of “climate change” meant nothing more than an early frost or a late snowfall, Saskatchewan was investing in renewable energy.
Today, the E.B. Campbell Hydroelectric Station near Nipiwan – commissioned in 1963 – is getting a second lease on life thanks to a six-year, $300 million refurbishment that should keep the province’s largest single hydro project in business for another half century.
This week, the Government of Canada announced that it is fulfilling its commitment to return approximately $174 million of pollution pricing proceeds to Saskatchewan through the Future Electricity Fund. It’s just the first tranche of funding that could approach half a billon dollars.
The E.B. Campbell hydro retrofit is one of the beneficiaries.
But so will be Saskatchewan residential home-owners, who will get new smart meter technologies that had not been imagined back in 1963 – technology that can help residents save money by powering their homes more efficiently.
And the federal funding will also support more electricity upgrades to reduce emissions and deliver more reliable power to rural communities across the province.
This is the way the world is moving in 2023.
The U.S. government has just moved forward with new draft rules to cut pollution from power plants, while Canada is currently developing our own Clean Electricity Regulations.
Never mind all the negative spin which is generating more heat than light. The fact is, Canada and US electricity regulations are sending a clear signal to Canada and the world. All the G7 countries committed this year to clean electricity grids by 2035, with massive investments in renewable clean power.
Developing a clean electricity grid will be the driving force behind significant new economic opportunities through the construction of new power sources and retrofits to existing energy infrastructure, like the E.B. Campbell power station. These great, forward-thinking national projects will not only power our economy, they will help protect us against the mounting costs that climate change imposes on our way of life.
Independent studies suggest average household energy costs will be 12% lower in 2050 thanks to a shift towards clean electrification and away from fossil fuels and their unpredictable price spikes. Using heat pumps and zero-emission electric vehicles result in household savings.
And that’s why the new American draft power plant rules have so much in common with what we are developing in Canada. Both are based on low emission performance standards, which are technology neutral and allow power plants flexibility on how to meet them. They both take into account the continuing role natural gas plays in meeting peak surge demand.
It’s a friendly competition, but competition it is.
The recent U.S. Inflation Reduction Act proposes $369 billion in spending, including substantial investments in electricity and clean technologies. Our Government, representing a population one tenth the size of the US market, has announced over $50 billion towards targeted investments to build net-zero electricity systems.
Saskatchewan is already a pioneer in carbon capture technology in the electricity sector with its Boundary Dam project. Clean Electricity Regulations will only turbo-charge this technology. Saskatchewan is also rich in sun and wind – the raw materials of the renewable energy revolution.
More than half a century after we harnessed the power of nature on the Saskatchewan River, new and inexpensive renewable technologies are elbowing out fossil fuel-fired electricity generation. Look to Alberta, where wind can now produce electricity at lower costs than natural gas and costs keep falling. Solar power, meanwhile, is already cheaper than natural gas power. Battery storage is the next wide-open opportunity for technological innovation.
It’s time to seize the advantages of a clean, integrated North American electricity grid. We’re already seeing the competitive advantage for state, provincial and territorial governments that have taken early action.
Now the Government of Canada is stepping up to help take the next big step. Saskatchewan cannot and will not be left behind.
Terry Duguid is the MP for WinnipegSouth and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada