SaskPower is inviting customers, municipalities, Indigenous communities, businesses and other stakeholders to provide input on how it will meet the needs of a growing economy, while also producing fewer emissions. In addition to holding in-person sessions, the utility has launched a new online tool on saskpower.com to make it easy and convenient for customers to share their ideas or to sign up for various online workshops.

The main drivers of SaskPower’s transition to a new power system are the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to meet federal targets, the province’s growing need for electricity and current federal regulations to retire all conventional coal-fired generation by 2030, while keeping the province’s power supply reliable and cost-effective.

“SaskPower finds itself in the midst of a clean energy transition and engaging with our customers about what this transition will look like is important,” said Tim Eckel, VP of Asset Management, Planning and Sustainability at SaskPower. “The goal of these discussions is to learn more about what our customers would like us to consider when it comes to planning for the future and to answer questions and understand any concerns. This dialogue is an ongoing priority and will continue for the next several months as we finalize our future supply plan.”

SaskPower is on track to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 50 per cent from 2005 levels by 2030 and is now looking beyond to a net zero GHG emissions future.

To reach these emissions targets, and to ensure energy security and reliability in the province, the utility is evaluating all low or non-emitting generation options available to Saskatchewan, including increased solar and wind generation, utility-scale energy storage, geothermal, expanded interconnections with neighbouring jurisdictions and nuclear power from small modular reactors.

In 2018, the federal government announced regulations requiring that all conventional coal-fired electrical generation be phased out by 2030. Currently, conventional coal accounts for approximately 24 per cent of SaskPower’s total generation capacity and with the federal carbon tax making other fossil fuel-based options more costly, the utility must develop low- or non-emitting options to ensure reliability and cost effectiveness. 

Learn more about SaskPower’s future power supply work at saskpower.com/futuresupply. To join the conversation, visit saskpower.com/engage. 

At a glance...

• SaskPower is hosting several online engagement opportunities on the utility’s future power supply plan
• SaskPower is on track to meet its emissions targets 
• Low and non-emitting generation sources available to Saskatchewan are being evaluated
• Federal regulations require conventional coal-fired generation be retired by 2030
• To join the conversation, visit saskpower.com/engage