Feds pledge $175M for 12 clean energy projects in Alberta

Several Alberta-based cleanable vigor projects volition beryllium bolstered by millions successful backing from the national government, but the premier says the feds’ net-zero goals stay far-fetched.

Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Jonathan Wilkinson announced, during a Monday greeting lawsuit successful Calgary, a full pledge of much than $175 cardinal toward 12 caller wind, star and smart-grid projects successful the province.

The funding, made disposable done the national government’s Smart Renewable and Electrification Pathways program, is expected to make thousands of jobs, including galore successful First Nation communities.

“Together these projects volition supply 387 megawatts of cleanable reliable powerfulness to Albertans portion creating hundreds of jobs and displacing emissions from high-carbon sources,” Wilkinson said. “In fact, these 12 projects are capable to powerfulness implicit 100,000 homes each twelvemonth portion redeeming the equivalent emissions of taking 150,000 gasoline-powered cars disconnected the road.”

The concern is portion of the government’s committedness to processing a net-zero energy strategy successful Canada by 2035.

Premier Danielle Smith, speaking astatine the World Petroleum Congress successful Calgary, said the national government’s 2035 extremity is unrealistic and would necessitate the spending of astir $144 cardinal and the consequent spike successful vigor costs to offset the spending.

“We’re going to basal steadfast we cannot bash a net-zero powerfulness grid by 2035. We deliberation we tin by 2050. Some of our producers accidental it tin beryllium done by 2045, truthful determination mightiness beryllium immoderate country for dialog and treatment there, but we person to person each 1 of our decisions based successful reality.”

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Smith besides took objection with the International Energy Agency’s lipid accumulation projections and described Wilkinson’s Sunday nighttime comments astatine the congress, based connected those projections, arsenic going implicit similar a “lead balloon.”

“To travel to a large vigor conference, an planetary vigor conference, with radical from each antithetic backgrounds, galore of them facing vigor poorness successful their ain countries, and talking to producers astir the ludicrous IEA projections that were lone going to person 25 cardinal barrels of lipid per time produced successful 2050, it was a spot of a slap successful the face,” Smith said.

“I don’t judge that those projections are accurate. I was pleased to spot the caput of Saudi Aramco said the aforesaid thing. The IEA has turned from being an entity that does predictions to being 1 that engages successful governmental advocacy and I don’t deliberation that’s precise adjuvant to the discussion.”

— with files from Global News’ Craig Momney