A solar energy generation and storage project in Foothills County has been downsized by the project operator.
TC Energy announced it was adjusting plans to its Saddlebrook Solar + Storage Project in a letter to High River council last month.
The planned project is on land owned by TC energy, south of 434 Avenue and east of Highway 2A, in the Saddlebrook Industrial Park. It consists of a solar generation facility and energy storage system.
When the Alberta Utility Commission (AUC) approved the project, in December 2021, plans included a 102.5-megawatt solar power plant. TC Energy has since changed the design to an 81-megawatt solar power plant, which it says can power up to 20,000 homes. A 6.5-megawatt storage facility, part of the original plan, has not changed.
The change requires fewer solar panels, and due to the revised project design, TC Energy said it will update the noise impact assessment and glare study that were submitted with the original application.
TC Energy plans to send a letter to the AUC this month to ask for approval of the new design and for an extension of the construction deadline to Dec. 31, 2023. The original AUC approval required that the power plant and substation be completed by May 1, 2023.
Pending necessary approvals, TC Energy anticipates construction to begin later this year, with Phase 1 being operational by the end of 2023.
The Saddlebrook Solar + Storage Project is to be completed in two phases. Phase 1 is the installation of up to 81 megawatts of solar generation and a substation.
Phase 2 is the construction of an energy storage facility capable of storing up to 6.5 megawatts of energy.
Foothills County issued a development permit for the solar and storage project in April 2022.
