Land south of the CF Industries fertilizer plant (left) is the subject of a contested proposal to build one of the largest solar energy facilities in Canada. A hearing with Alberta Utilities Commission will hear from three groups in opposition of the project for different reasons.--NEWS FILE PHOTO
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant
Hearings into the plan to build the largest urban solar facility proposed in Canada in north Medicine Hat will begin Tuesday, five years after it was publicly revealed and eight months after an original hearing date was postponed.
The Saamis Solar plant would cover 1,600 acres of land north of Crescent Heights and produce up to 325 megawatts of power for the Alberta grid for private utility developer DP Energy.
That is more in peak conditions than the total output of the City of Medicine Hat’s gas-fired power plant, and on land the private firm says in unproductive or has no other useful purpose due to contamination.
Three groups say otherwise however, and are intervening to oppose the project, including land developers, environmentalists and an oil company.
They plan to call witnesses as the Alberta Utilities Commission will hold four days of virtual hearings on the estimated $600-million project starting April 9.
The News revealed in 2019 a plan by Irish-based DP Energy to erect solar panel arrays on the former tailings pond of the Westco Fertilizer plant.
At the time, the company had moved ahead with two similar projects on contaminated land in Calgary, but “Saamis Solar” north of Crescent Heights would be the largest.
Deerfoot and Barlow solar fields have since been built on land leased from Viterra and sold to ATCO.
It 2020, DP, which also operates in the tidal-wave energy sector in the Bay of Fundy, expanded its project beyond the capped Phosphogypsum stacks of the former plant site east toward Division Avenue, and the proposed capacity of the project rose from 200 megawatts to 325.
That’s too close to land that could be developed for housing, according to a group that formed last year known as Medicine Hat Land Developers, which owns parcels further east.
It includes construction company owner Rick Wahl, land developer Garry Stimson and land owner Bill Fanning. Those three intend to testify at the virtual hearing and have legal representatives discuss the matter with a land valuation expert.
They have argued in preliminary correspondence that the project will detract from potential housing on their land and is contrary to city’s long-term development plans.
Another group, Medicine Hat Concerned Citizens, includes several prominent environmental advocates in the city and has outlined species at risk in the area and will present on localized environmental impact.
The AUC ruled in the cases of DP’s Calgary projects that the urban, former industrial character of the projects negated a requirement for environmental impact studies.
Journey Energy, which bought a majority stake in the Glauc C oilfield, which partially lies beneath the parcel, is expected to argue its finances and ability to access drilling targets will be harmed by the surface construction.
Dates are scheduled for April 9, 11, 12 and 16 before an exchange of final written arguments is required by May 7.
In initial requests for information exchanged by the parties since the fall, DP Energy argues that all three uses proposed by opponents – left bare, developed for oil production and be used for new housing – cannot coexist.
It also argues it has an active proposal for the parcels, which it states are class 7 soil (a very low productivity), a lease agreement with the current owner (Viterra) and should be able to move ahead with the project.
The AUC application was set to go to hearing in July 2023 when DP postponed the matter to redraw the layout to accommodate new setback from a ferruginous hawk nesting site. Before it could be rescheduled, the provincial government placed a moratorium on wind, solar and geothermal facility applications. That ended on Feb. 29.
That resulted in some new requirements from applicants regarding visual impact in certain areas of the province and more attention be paid to agricultural productivity.
