DP Energy sells projects to Atco, will focus on local solar play
By COLLIN GALLANT on October 4, 2021.
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant The company planning to build solar power arrays on fertilizer tailing ponds in Alberta has sold two projects to Atco, and will now focus on the largest – the Saamis Solar Park inside Medicine Hat city limits. DP Energy first proposed building the huge facility north of Crescent Heights in early 2019, and since then has expanded the project to make it one of Canada’s largest with a 325-megawatt capacity and estimated budget of more than $400 million. Company officials have told the News it would proceed once the construction on two similar projects in Calgary was nearing completion. Those were sold to Atco on Sept. 30, potentially clearing the way for a focus on DP’s project in Medicine Hat. DP Energy founder and president Simon Depietro told the News the size of the project and its requirement for large transmission project approvals mean the timelines for local development may not change, but the company expects to make a formal announcement soon. “Saamis is very much front and centre of our Alberta and broader Canada aspirations, and we are hoping to accelerate it,” he wrote in an email from the company’s global head office in Ireland. Officials with DP Energy, which has Canadian offices in Halifax, did not return calls seeking comment. The project has received a local development permit, but has not yet been submitted to the Alberta Utilities Commission, a requirement for the project that would likely export power outside the city on to the Alberta grid. City of Medicine Hat elected officials have been supportive of the private-sector project, but they as well as utility administrators have stated the merits of a potential partnership or purchase agreements need to be studied and not interfere with the city’s own power-generation charter. City economic development officials with Invest Medicine Hat have said renewable energy production in southeast Alberta is a key piece of a hydrogen sector development plan launched this summer. The non-emitting fuel can be created either using natural gas in traditional steam reforming, or by electrolyzing water with large amounts of electricity. To reduce environmental impact, CO2 could be sequestered, creating so-called “blue hydrogen,” or, in the case of “green hydrogen,” renewable power would be employed to transform water. “(Medicine Hat’s) secret weapon, really, is renewable energy potential here,” said Eric Van Enk, Invest’s director of strategy, before the “Hydrogen Hub” strategy was revealed to council on Aug. 23. The local site comprises 1,000 acres of land owned by Viterra located south of the CF Industries plant, which was once the pond for the Westco Fertilizer. With any intense development barred due to a capped phosphogypsum stack, the company says placing arrays on concrete pads will limit ground disturbance and make use of the otherwise fallow field. Both the Barlow Solar Park and Deerfoot Solar Park in Calgary suggest similar plans to build 27- and 37-megawatt solar power plants, respectively, and both sites are legacy industrial sites owned by Viterra. Atco said when the deal was announced it would take over development and construction of the projects, which could begin in early 2022 and be completed later that year. On Monday it applied to the Alberta Utilities Commission to connect those facilities to the Alberta power grid. Atco sold all its fossil fuel-based power generating facilities to Heartland Generation partners in 2019. Late last month, Atco also bought the Empress Solar Park in northeast Cypress County from Aura Renewables, stating the purchases would aid communities in the transition to “clean energy in a safe, affordable and reliable manner.” “These solar projects are also prime examples of the kinds of opportunities we’ll continue to pursue as we grow our renewables portfolio going forward,” said Atco vice-president of corporate development Bob Myles. 21-20
