Canadian province Alberta has announced that competition is now open for the second and third rounds of the Renewable Electricity Program (REP).
Image: Alberta province issues RfQ for 700MW renewable energy projects. Photo: Courtesy of andrew sim/FreeImages.com.
As part of the REP, the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) has issued Request for Qualifications related to 700MW in renewable energy projects.
AESO has opened a three-stage competitive process, under which bids totalling 700MW in renewable energy, enough to be supplied to about 300,000 homes will be considered.
Alberta Government stated that the program could attract about C$10bn ($7.8bn) in new private investment, while creating about 7,000 jobs for the locals by 2030.
The REP is aimed at developing 5GW of renewable capacity that could help the state in achieving its 30% renewable energy target by 2030.
The program’s second round is expected to see private-sector partnerships with Indigenous communities bidding to generate about 300MW of clean energy. The government stated that each bid must include a minimum of 25% of indigenous equity ownership in the form of ownership stake in the project or land-use agreement between the company and the community.
The third round in the program will include the procurement of 400MW, which will be conducted through an open competition, similar to the first round that was conducted during last year’s ending.
Renewable projects selected under the program 5MW and must be operational before June ending, 2021.
AESO will accept proposals for RfQ till 21st June and will evaluate them till September. In September, it will start issuing Request for Proposals. Successful proposals will be announced by the end of this year.
Alberta Minister of Energy Margaret McCuaig-Boyd said: “Alberta is a proud leader in all forms of energy, and our renewables program will continue to create good jobs and help ensure we have a more diversified economy that’s built to last.
“We expect this highly competitive process to continue attracting investment from Alberta and around the world, creating meaningful partnerships with Indigenous communities and getting Albertans the most renewable power generation for the lowest cost.”