The Pesâkâstêw Solar Project
The Pesâkâstêw Solar Project is a 10 MW solar farm in Treaty 6 near Weyburn, Saskatchewan. It was up and running by 2022, providing clean energy to the Saskatchewan electrical grid.
This project is the result of collaboration between the Pesâkâstêw Solar Limited Partnership, Natural Forces, George Gordon Developments Ltd. (GGDL), First Nations Power Authority (FNPA), and Red Dog Holdings Ltd. (RDHL). The Pesâkâstêw Solar Limited Partnership owns the project and Natural Forces is doing the project development. GGDL is the economic development branch of George Gordon First Nation while RDHL is the economic development branch of Star Blanket Cree Nation.
The project takes up around 110 acres of land and connects directly to the SaskPower substation nearby. It provides electricity to about 2,500 homes annually!
Project Background
The site for this project was selected based on Saskatchewan’s great potential to produce solar power. As the solar farm is in the southern part of the province, it has even greater potential to produce solar energy and contribute to Canada’s 50% renewable energy by 2030 target.
FNPA’s Role in the Pesâkâstêw Solar Project
To get the project started, our team managed the legal agreement negotiations with SaskPower, found the developers, conducted interviews with any First Nations groups that were interested, and selected the nations that we believed would be able to build off of this project.
The two communities we selected, Star Blanket Cree Nation and George Gordon First Nation, had the passion and resources to be involved in developing and running the Pesâkâstêw Solar Project. This means that each nation owns 25.5% of the project, while the other developer owns 49%. This makes the project majority Indigenous-owned.
Star Blanket Cree Nation and George Gordon First Nation were both driven by economic opportunity and growth for their communities. They have a passion for involvement in the clean energy transition and seized the unique option for economic development in their nations.
Starting the Pesâkâstêw Solar Project
This project, like any other clean energy project, required a great deal of strategy and steps to bring to life and maintain.
1. Development included assessing the solar resources, surveying, consulting with community stakeholders and regulators, working with the rural municipality, applying for permits, and optimizing the layout.
2. Construction involved preparing the land, building all necessary access roads and panel racks, installing the panes and any other equipment, and beginning the process of connection with SaskPower.
After all of this prep work came the actual power production steps:
3. Operation: start producing power, monitor for wildlife and real-time alerts, make regular visits, and operate for 20 years.
And, lastly, after 20 years, comes potential decommissioning.
4. Decommissioning: assessing all equipment after 20 years, and either reclaiming the site and taking it all down, OR receiving approvals and permits to continue producing energy.
The Results of the Pesâkâstêw Solar Project
This project has enjoyed many forms of success since its completion in 2021:
- The system size is 14, 080 kW.
- The annual production (kW/year) is 23, 780, 000.
- The communities involved in the project will enjoy long-term benefits including financial stability and hiring and employment opportunities.
- This site is saving the Saskatchewan government a great deal each year in carbon taxes as it’s taking power production away from natural gas and coal and towards renewable sources.
We were so fortunate to contribute to bringing this project to life! Working with both the Star Blanket Cree Nation and George Gordon First Nation on their first clean energy project was an honour, and we look forward to continually supporting the success of their communities and this project.
Let’s talk about a partnership today!
FNPA is a Indigenous governed, not-for-profit development company, reducing development costs and risks for Indigenous-led projects. FNPA is the pathway to powerful opportunities.