Photo: Cowessess Ventures Ltd.
Saskatchewan is no stranger to wind. And, while the title of windiest city in Canada belongs to St. John’s, Newfoundland, Saskatchewan has claimed to be the windiest place in Canada — if only briefly by those who call the province home.
The ebbs and flows of wind bring about some volatility challenges when it comes to power generation, but wind remains a significant source of renewable energy generation. People have been harnessing wind power for centuries but its use in electrical production began in 1887, when Scottish professor James Blyth built the first windmill used to power a home, his country cottage. Since then, wind turbines have popped up across the world, converting the wind’s kinetic energy into electricity.
Wind energy, and other renewable sources like solar, rely heavily on weather patterns. If the wind isn’t blowing or the sun isn’t shining, then power generation slows or stops all together without a storage solution. This unpredictability can be hard to manage when it comes to renewable energy projects and managing an electricity grid.
This was the challenge the integrated energy systems experts at the Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) chose to tackle head-on as part of a unique collaboration with a Saskatchewan First Nation.
First Nation Seeking Wind Farm Feasibility
In 2006-07, in response to Cowessess First Nation’s plan for a wind farm in southern Saskatchewan, SRC supported the First Nation in determining the viability of the project by installing an anemometer tower near the proposed site of the farm to measure the wind resource.
An anemometer is a device that measures wind speed, and is a common instrument used by meteorologists to study weather patterns. In this instance, Cowessess wanted a clear picture of the behaviour of prairie winds high above.
“SRC initially conducted a wind resource assessment for Cowessess to gauge how much wind is in the area,” said Ryan Jansen, Manager of SRC’s Process Development team, who has been involved in the project since the early days. “Originally Cowessess was interested in a large wind farm project but were unable to proceed with their initial plan.”
SRC proposed an alternative renewable energy project that would be the first-of-its-kind in North America, combining wind power and battery backup, later known as a microgrid demonstration.
Harnessing the power of prairie wind
Photo: Cowessess Ventures Ltd.
In 2013, SRC, alongside Cowessess First Nation, trail-blazed a new utility-scale wind-battery microgrid project in collaboration with the First Nation, a Treaty 4 nation located near Broadview, Saskatchewan. The microgrid was slated for Cowessess land just four kilometres east of Regina.
“It was the first utility-scale wind-battery system behind the power meter,” Jansen said.
The goal for the project was to demonstrate the reliability of renewable energy through this microgrid demonstration, and for Cowessess, they wanted a project that would enable them to enter into a power purchase agreement with Saskatchewan’s Crown utility, SaskPower, and allow them to participate in the renewable sector. The power generated by the wind-battery system would be sold to SaskPower, generating revenue for the First Nation and spurring further Indigenous economic development.
“Harnessing the power of prairie wind was more than just a technological milestone, it was a step toward energy sovereignty and economic opportunity for our nation,” said Rebecca Acikahte, Business Development Manager, Renewables at Cowessess Ventures Ltd. “This project demonstrated the reliability of renewable energy while paving the way for future Indigenous opportunities in the renewable sector.”
For SRC, this collaboration was a great opportunity to advance a research project leading into a business case for microgrid technology and its applications.
A microgrid is a system comprised of an autonomous set of power generation sources, which can also store and power electronics whether connected to the grid or not.
Instead of the plan for a wind farm, Cowessess and SRC moved ahead with a microgrid demonstration as it proved to be a more cost-effective and manageable project, according to Jansen.
“We worked with Cowessess First Nation to envision a smaller scale microgrid that could be scaled up in the future,” he said.
“Our collaboration with SRC has been instrumental in advancing Cowessess First Nation’s renewable energy vision,” Acikahte said. “SRC has provided invaluable expertise and support in helping the nation achieve its goals in building a sustainable future for our community.”
The result is anything but small.
“The 800-kilowatt wind turbine stands 73 metres tall, with the diameter of the blades spanning 53 metres, so altogether from the peak to the ground you’re looking at a structure over 100 metres tall,” Jansen said.
At the base of the towering turbine is a series of lithium-ion batteries with 400 kilowatts of power, and 744 kilowatt-hours of storage.
According to Jansen, power generated from coal and natural gas generation facilities can be quite consistent. However, wind energy is more volatile and a sudden drop in wind can be challenging for the grid to handle but there are ways to smooth out this volatility.
“Renewables can be volatile. Battery storage can really improve the predictability and reliability of these generation sources,” Jansen said. “The battery we installed was useful for smoothing volatility and improving predictability, and it's been reliable and long lasting.”
“The provincial grid is on an instantaneous supply and demand stream, so basically whatever power you and I are using has to be generated at the exact second that we’re using it,” he explains.
Jansen’s team determined that a wind turbine with battery storage would be a reliable way to generate electricity.
“This project was the first wind-battery system co-located behind the power meter and it’s been generating power since 2013,” Jansen said.
The microgrid produces approximately 175 megawatt-hours of energy each month, generating revenue for the First Nation through its agreement with SaskPower. As well, greenhouse gas emissions are reduced by the equivalent of approximately 1,300 tonnes per year. The wind turbine alone generates enough electricity to meet the annual energy requirements of approximately 250 homes.
A Not-So-Micro Microgrid Gets a Makeover
Photo: Cowessess Ventures Ltd.
In 2018, SRC worked with Cowessess on a federal proposal to bolster the Cowessess wind-battery project, adding 1,400 solar panels, taking advantage of the sunny Saskatchewan skies to produce another 500 kilowatts of power and transforming this microgrid into a trifecta power generation station.
“Part of the reason for this was wind and solar really complement each other,” Jansen said. “You get the doldrums in the summer where it’s really hot and sunny and there’s not a lot of wind, so they balance each other out. If it’s stormy outside you’re gifted lots of wind but not a lot of sun.”
This advanced microgrid project has generated significant revenue for the First Nation, spurring Indigenous economic development.
“This project has set the tone for Cowessess First Nation to achieve economic growth, energy sovereignty and environmental sustainability by generating revenue, reducing emissions and increasing control over its energy future,” Acikahte said. “The success of this initiative has also positioned the nation as a leader in Indigenous-led clean energy, paving the way for large-scale projects.”
Jansen and his team proved the effectiveness of a wind, solar and battery microgrid, demonstrating that a clear path to long-term, sustainable renewable energy doesn’t necessarily have a silver-bullet solution.
“There is no single technology that will bring us into the future of green energy. It has to be an ‘all-of-the-above’ solution, and right now I think Saskatchewan’s advantage does include wind and solar,” Jansen said.
“As we add more renewables like wind and solar to the grid, we will need the ability to manage their volatility,” Jansen suggested, “such as using energy storage and demand response programs that essentially tell consumers to reduce their demand at certain times.”
Remote Monitoring, Training and Education for Future Microgrids
Photo: Cowessess Ventures Ltd.
Since the microgrid upgrades and the addition of solar panels, the relationship between SRC and Cowessess continues as SRC experts work with the First Nation, offering training and education to individuals to maintain the microgrid. This ensures the First Nation can continue to supply SaskPower with clean, renewable power.
Building off the momentum of this successful microgrid demonstration, Jansen said, his team at SRC and Cowessess often provide tours to groups both within and outside Saskatchewan.
“We’ve also done multiple joint presentations with Cowessess when they might have band members or students or people from out of province who want to come and tour the microgrid and learn about the system,” Jansen said.
SRC also installed a sophisticated remote monitoring system at the microgrid site, where Jansen and his team can monitor the microgrid, collecting thousands of data points across the system including the inverters from the solar arrays, the anemometer tower and the wind turbine, all accessible from SRC headquarters in Saskatoon.
“We can remote into the site through a virtual workstation that we can use to operate the system in case we need to turn batteries on or off or adjust setpoints,” Jansen said. “All that is done remotely and all the data is stored within SRC, so it gets transmitted from site into SRC. We keep it as a long-term data repository so we can analyze the performance of the system.”
Having access from hundreds of kilometres away increases the reliability of the system because at a moment’s notice, Jansen can log into the system and troubleshoot any issues that he’s alerted to.
Jansen recalled a case where he received a notification from the microgrid that one of the batteries had a fault and it turned itself down as it was programmed to do for safety.
Jansen logged on to check it out, rather than driving across the province.
“I looked at the fault and I was able to clear and remedy the problem and turn the battery back on remotely,” Jansen said. “I didn't have to go to site to get everything back online and it took me about two minutes.”
While this microgrid demonstration was the first-of-its-kind in 2018, Cowessess recognized the potential and opportunity with renewable energy and have embarked on two massive renewable projects on its own, including a 10-megawatt solar power generation project on Cowessess land adjacent to the wind-battery-solar project.
Cowessess recently completed a 200-megawatt wind project alongside SaskPower. The Bekevar Wind Project, spanning over 20,000 acres located north of Moose Mountain Provincial Park, would generate enough energy to power 100,000 homes.
About SRC’s Integrated Energy Systems Services
SRC’s smart-grid and microgrid solutions provide real and practical opportunities that help industries and communities transition to cleaner renewable sources of energy, while promoting energy autonomy and reliability. This also creates opportunities for alternative sources of revenue, training and knowledge-building with local communities.
The team also provides Hybrid Energy Containers, which offer a customizable combination of conventional and renewable generation sources together with energy storage.
By incorporating technologies such as heat pumps, solar panels and wind, these systems are more efficient and environmentally sustainable than traditional diesel generators. They have several applications, including providing power for industrial sites, off-grid communities and disaster-affected areas.
To learn more about SRC’s services and expertise, visit our website and learn about SRC’s Decentralized Energy Solutions.
