Proposed battery storage near Dino Provincial Park would be largest system in the province

By Medicine Hat News on April 11, 2025.

The Jurassic Solar project layout, located west of Jenner on the boundary between Cypress and Newell County, is shown in this handout map from Northland Power. The company will proceed with building a related battery storage system in 2025 and 2026, it announced Wednesday.--Supplied Image

@MedicineHatNews

The largest battery storage system in Alberta could be built soon near Dinosaur Provincial Park, according to the company proposing to build it alongside a major solar power field.

Canadian utility Northland Power said Wednesday it has secured financing for its Jurassic BESS project, an 80-megawatt (160 MW/h capacity) storage system located southwest of Jenner.

It has also signed construction contracts to have the $120-million facility in service in late 2026.

“This BESS project will enhance the stability and reliability of Alberta’s energy grid, expand our footprint in Canada and diversify our asset base,” said Christine Healy, Northland’s president and CEO. “It highlights the growth potential of our multi-technology approach.”

It would become Northland’s second battery facility as the larger Oneida storage plant in Ontario nears completion.

The Alberta project would also come online before a related 220 MW solar field that has already been approved by provincial utility regulators.

That field, which lays partly in Cypress County, is expected to come online in 2028 according to company literature.

Power from the project is subject to a 15-year fixed price contract with a consortium of Alberta school boards that purchase items like power in bulk.

Northlands stated it expects the specific battery project to add unadjusted earnings of $15 million annually.