Brody Langager
Saskatoon StarPhoenix
The sun peeked out from behind the clouds just in time for the Dundonald Avenue Solar Farm to start generating electricity in Saskatoon on Tuesday.
The 14-acre facility located between the CN rail tracks and Circle Drive is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 23,000 tonnes (equivalent to the emissions from 160 cars) over its 25 to 30-year lifespan.
Mayor Cynthia Block took part in the ribbon cutting and got to press the button to start the facility. She said this project took underused land and gave it a purpose with lasting value for the city.
“Here we are on Dundonald Avenue with the sun shining in bright and sunny Saskatoon, and it’s shining brightly today,” Block said.
The cost of the 2.8 megawatt project is $7.3 million, with partial funding from the province and federal governments. It is less than the $8.46 million allocated for the project last year, but still more than the $4.25 million originally reported in 2021.
Cost recovery for this project is expected to take 15 years.
Trevor Bell, director of SL&P, said the project came in under budget.
“We have not developed a site like this before,” he said, adding that probably attributed to some of the previously reported numbers being on the safe side.
The solar farm has 4,500 solar panel modules separated between a north and a south end, with about 20 per cent of the electricity generated on the south end, and 80 per cent on the north end.
One of the Saskatoon Light and Power (SL&P) staff noted that the panels can generate electricity on either side, noting that sunlight reflected from the snow can also be utilized.
While the solar farm will be operating year round, the city noted that peak energy generation will happen in the summer months. SL&P had originally planned to have the solar farm commissioned by last Christmas, but Bell said winter can be cold and dark.
The city’s general manager of utilities and environment, Angela Gardiner, said this is one of the major clean energy projects in the city, and will generate electricity to power more than 400 homes.
That’s the equivalent of powering a neighbourhood like Richmond Heights.
“These are real, measurable benefits to our community,” Gardiner said.
The city said it considers this to be a medium-sized project. They plan to look at other sites for larger solar farms in the future.
Last year, the city reported that the Dundonald Avenue Solar Farm would have a lifetime emission reduction of 19,380 tonnes.
Bell said they only had preliminary information on the greenhouse gas emission reduction, but said that information shows they are at least meeting or exceeding their expectations.
Whether the city could see some cost reductions to power bills once the 15-year cost recovery time is over, Bell wouldn’t say.
But he did note that it’s a very dynamic time for electricity.
“Lots of wind and solar, nuclear, all kinds of technologies are being developed. So how that impacts rates, we’ll have to see.”
SL&P matches the energy rates of SaskPower. The Crown corporation recently raised rates by 3.9 per cent in February and warned of another 3.9 per cent hike the same time next year. That means the average customer will be hit with more than $11 a month in additional costs from both increases.
