SaskPower

SaskPower is a Canadian provincial Crown corporation that, as of 2010, manages $4.9 billion in generation, transmission and distribution assets, including three coal-fired power stations, seven hydroelectric stations, five natural gas stations, and two wind power facilities. Combined, they generate 3,371 megawatts (MW) of electricity.

Carbon capture projects

 * Boundary Dam Integrated Carbon Capture & Storage Demonstration Project
 * Weyburn-Midale CO2 Monitoring and Storage Project

Boundary Dam project
The Boundary Dam Integrated Carbon Capture & Storage Demonstration Project is a proposal by SaskPower to convert Unit 3 at the existing coal-fired Boundary Dam Power Station to a 115-120 megawatts power station with Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS). It is proposed that the captured carbon dioxide used for enhanced oil recovery.

In 2008, Prime Minister Stephen Harper was in southeastern Saskatchewan to tour the Boundary Dam where the federal and provincial governments are spending hundreds of millions of dollars working on a ""clean coal" pilot project. Per capita, the province is the largest emitter in the country due to its reliance on burning coal to generate electricity, and has the second-highest greenhouse gas emissions per capita of any jurisdiction in the world — 72 tonnes per person annually — according to the Saskatchewan Environmental Society. The company estimates it would cost $1.2 billion to rebuild Boundary Dam 3 as a fully integrated carbon-capture and storage unit.

In December 2010, SaskPower said it needs more information from the federal government before it decides whether to move ahead with the CCS project, and that it will instead rebuild its aging Unit 3 at the coal-fired Boundary Dam power plant. Refurbishing the 45-year-old unit to extend its life by another 30 years would cost an estimated $354 million.

In April 2011, Saskatchewan approved the $1.24-billion project, which is backed with $240-million from the federal government.

Contact details
Website: http://www.saskpower.com/

Related Sourcewatch articles

 * Boundary Dam Integrated Carbon Capture & Storage Demonstration Project
 * Canada and coal
 * Carbon capture and storage
 * Carbon Capture and Storage demonstration projects worldwide
 * Carbon Capture and Storage in Canada
 * Clean coal
 * Weyburn-Midale CO2 Monitoring and Storage Project