Oct. 2, 2018

Calgary — Sara Hastings-Simon, Managing Director, Clean Economy at the Pembina Institute, made the following statement in response to the Alberta government's recent announcement:

“The Government of Alberta’s decision to take advantage of the falling cost of solar power is a good move. Around the world, the cost of solar-generated electricity has decreased dramatically in the past decades. For example, according to a report from the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, solar power costs in the U.S. have fallen 75% since 2008.

“The value of solar to Alberta’s grid is increasing each year. Again, this summer we saw record-breaking electricity demand on the hottest days of the year. That’s exactly when solar produces the most energy and can bring down the cost of electricity for everyone. This is hopefully only the beginning of solar procurement on this scale.

“This call for large-scale solar proposals is similar to Alberta’s successful renewable power procurement program in 2017. That program asked energy producers to compete with each other to produce electricity at the lowest prices for Albertans, and it resulted in some of the cheapest wind power in the country. A competitive process is a good deal.”

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Contact

Suzy Thompson

Communications Lead, Pembina Institute

587-585-4522

Background

Infographic: Wind and solar in Alberta

Factsheet: The true price of wind and solar electricity generation