Irish company, DP Energy, has completed the sale of North America’s largest urban solar project, Saamis solar park, to the city of Medicine Hat, Canada.
The transfer was approved by Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) which has enabled the city to finalise the acquisition of the 325 MW project.
DP Energy secured the development rights to the site in 2017, then proceeded to obtain a development permit in 2021 before gaining the necessary approval from the AUC in 2024 to construct and operate the project. With the transfer of the approval, Medicine Hat has acquired a ‘ready-to-build’ solar project with all necessary planning and environmental approvals in place.
The city now intends to seek an amendment to allow it to construct the Saamis solar project in phases, with the first phase adding 75 MW of additional generation to the city’s existing fleet of generating units.
Situated in the northwest of Canada’s sunniest city, when fully built, Saamis solar park is expected to generate enough electricity to supply the equivalent of approximately 100 000 households and offset around 350 000 tpy of carbon emissions.
Home to more than 600 000 solar panels, Saamis solar park will create a significant number of direct employment opportunities during the construction, operation, and decommissioning phases, as well as extensive indirect opportunities across the full supply chain.
DP Energy’s development portfolio in Canada includes a range of solar, onshore wind, storage, and offshore wind projects across the country, including the 400 MW Nova East wind project, a joint venture with SBM Offshore labelled Canada’s first offshore wind project.
Currently, DP Energy has a 4.5 GW pipeline of renewable energy projects across Ireland, the UK, Australia, and Canada and is now also active in southern Africa.
Damian Bettles, DP Energy’s Head of Development Canada, responded: “As the largest urban solar development in North America, Saamis solar park is a project we are proud to have developed. With the sale of Saamis solar park to the city of Medicine Hat, not only is it a productive use of a large area of contaminated land, it now also has the potential to contribute to the city’s energy transition to clean, renewable power. DP Energy are pleased to have worked with the city and with Viterra, the owner of the development land, on this project.”
This follows on the back of recent EPBC approval from the Australian Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment & Water, for the Callide wind farm located in Queensland, Australia, a DP Energy renewable energy project with a capacity of 430 MW.
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