Alberta renewables sector fears politicization of energy as moratorium ends
Global News
The industry was caught off guard last August by the UCP government's move to impose a temporary moratorium on new wind and solar approvals.
A seven-month pause on wind and solar development in Alberta is coming to an end, but some involved in the sector say increased politicization threatens its future growth.
The industry was caught off guard last August by the UCP government’s move to impose a temporary moratorium on new wind and solar approvals in the province to give it time to study issues related to land use, reclamation and grid reliability.
That moratorium is set to expire Thursday, after which the government is expected to unveil new rules to guide future wind and solar development in the province.
But Dan Balaban, CEO of Greengate Power Corp., said the government-imposed pause on the renewables sector is just one piece of an increasingly contentious public debate that has left the wind and solar industry feeling like a political football.
“This is really about the politics of energy,” said Balaban, whose company was behind the development of the Travers Solar farm in southern Alberta, one of the largest solar projects in the world.
“It’s very disappointing because I think there are pragmatic solutions to get us to where we ultimately need to be in terms of providing clean, reliable and affordable energy, and the politics of division aren’t going to get us there. For me, as an entrepreneur, it’s very off-putting.”
The government-imposed moratorium was a response to what has been an explosion of growth in the province’s renewable energy in recent years. In 2022, 75 per cent of all new wind and solar projects in Canada were built in Alberta, thanks to the province’s sunny skies, abundance of wind and unique deregulated electricity market.
But the rapid growth led to questions from rural communities about who would be on the hook to clean up renewable energy infrastructure as well as concerns around the use of food-producing agricultural land for renewable energy development.
