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SaskPower’s Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) facility was designed to achieve an emissions intensity of approximately 140 tonnes of CO₂ per gigawatt-hour (t/GWh). While the facility has not achieved its design emissions intensity on a sustainable basis to date, the technology has proven to be effective at capturing CO₂, and the learnings we have gained since 2014 have resulted in significant performance improvements. 

Since operational start-up in 2014, the facility has captured more than 5.2 million tonnes of CO₂. During the first quarter of 2023 (Jan. 1 to March 31), the facility was available 93% of the time, capturing 226,184 tonnes of CO₂. While online, the facility had a daily average capture rate of 2,688 tonnes, with a peak one-day capture of 2,873.8 tonnes. This resulted in an emissions intensity of 354 t/GWh. Performance updates for previous periods are available for comparison at saskpower.com/blog.

No decisions have been made about the future of Boundary Dam Unit #3. The CCS retrofit of the unit extends its life to 2044. However, even the facility’s design emissions intensity is not expected to meet the emissions performance standard in the federal government’s proposed Clean Electricity Regulations.

The operational life of the SMR technology we’ve selected is 60 years. Nuclear power must make financial sense for our province and determining project costs is something we’re working very hard on. We recognize that nuclear power is a capital-intensive generation option at the outset, but over the 60-year lifespan of a facility, this option could be one of the more cost-effective sources available to the province.

The GE-Hitachi BWRX-300 technology that SaskPower has selected does not use spent fuel, but there are some SMR technologies that are in development that can.  The Moltex technology, for example, re-purposes used nuclear fuel from the existing CANDU reactors in Canada.

The BWRX-300 reactor must be taken out of service and re-fueled every two years, where one third of the fuel is removed and replaced with new fuel elements. This is all done at the site of the facility.

In Canada, all nuclear by-products including used fuel are heavily regulated and safely tracked and stored by the waste owners. For the SMR facility in Saskatchewan we will develop similar plans that include interim storage of the used nuclear fuel at our site. Eventually, the plan is to send all used nuclear fuel, known as high level nuclear waste, to a permanent disposal facility. The Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) has a mandate to develop centralized disposal facilities for all of Canada’s used nuclear fuel, which includes new SMR projects that are being considered. The NWMO is developing plans for a Deep Geological Repository or DGR, where the used nuclear fuel would be placed 500-800 metres underground where there is suitable geology.

1. Importing MW's from the US. - As we know there are fossil-fuelled generators in the northern US - As such, will there be a carbon tax applied by the Feds on those MW's imported?

Currently, carbon emissions are taxed where they are created and do not apply to imported power. This could change in the future. To ensure we are getting a fair price and low GHG emissions, we intend to form agreements with power providers from the United States for a portion of the imported power we might need. We will not contract with coal generators.

2. As the public becomes more concerned with reliability of power supply, many are installing gas, diesel or natural gas fuelled back-up/emergency generators for their homes, businesses and industries. Are the impacts of the emissions from these back-up/emergency generators being considered when investigating the lower reliability energy sources (ie. wind, solar, etc.)? 

When it comes to providing reliable power for the province, SaskPower must consider many factors including greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from power generation. However, we only consider those emissions that we produce as a utility – not emissions from generators that individual customers may use or have on standby.

While renewable generation from wind and solar is intermittent (or non-dispatchable) power supply, we will always ensure we have enough baseload (or dispatchable) power to back them up. The emissions involved in that generation are tracked and reported.

3. Biomass - Although a very responsible way of handling waste (garbage, straw and wood-waste); as we know a number of these fuels have a lower heating value, therefore the volume burned per MW is higher and the resulting CO2 emissions per MW are higher. Also, as we know you cannot grow trees, corn, grain or sugar-cane as quickly as you can burn it, therefore, I would not call it a net-zero process. a) Will Carbon Capture be required on these facilities?

Right now carbon capture is not required on biomass facilities; however, many believe that implementing carbon capture could provide many benefits. If used to remove CO2 from biomass generation, which is already deemed carbon neutral, it would theoretically reduce the overall concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere, helping to mitigate climate change. If production tax credits are assigned to negative emissions generation such as biomass with carbon capture technology, this technology may prove cost-effective. While biomass with carbon capture offers potential benefits, the technology isn’t without challenges. Additional engineering work will be required for adapting and implementing carbon capture on a biomass exhaust stream.

b) In terms of the amounts of wood pellets being produced for use in Canada and for export (ie Belgium, etc) I would question there being enough wood waste to supply the demand knowing the weight of coal to produce a MW and that wood has a lower heating value. c) Is this adversely impacting the recycling and reconstitution of wood wastes for construction and shipping materials? Once again affecting our forests, the environment they provide and their CO2 processing. d) Is this high and lucrative demand, which I expect exceeds the production of authentic wood waste, having an adverse effect on Canada's forests and the environment they provide for many species of plants, animals and birds to mention a few? As well as the volumes of CO2 our forests process.

Over 80% of pellet production come from British Columbia (45%), Quebec (21%), and Alberta (17%). The majority of Canadian wood pellet mills are third-party certified under the Sustainable Biomass Program. More information can be found here.

4. Has there been a study done on the economics of Natural Gas generation with Carbon Capture and Sequestration, etc. vs. SMR generation and the costs of fuel and waste handling. Both support Saskatchewan industries.

As part of our future supply plan, SaskPower is evaluating all low and non-emitting options available to Saskatchewan, including CCS on Natural Gas and nuclear power from SMR technology. Maintaining a diverse supply mix now and into the future is essential to powering Saskatchewan reliably and cost effectively. Every option we explore has their pros and cons. It’s certainly not an either-or discussion. For example, nuclear power has highly regulated waste-management requirements and a well-established fuel supply chain that offers a lower cost risk, but it requires a large upfront capital investment. Carbon Capture technology on natural gas may cost less in comparison to nuclear power at the front end but is much more unpredictable over the longer term because of the fluctuations in the cost of fuel and sequestering large amounts of CO2 can pose technical challenges.  For now, both options are being evaluated as part of our diverse future supply plan.

While SaskPower does not offer incentives or rebates for the purchase or installation of solar panels, our Net Metering Program gives customers the opportunity to generate up to 100 kW (DC) of power from eligible energy resources to offset their own power use, decreasing their monthly bills. Solar photovoltaic modules are one of the eligible resources under the program. The program is open to all SaskPower customers. For more information, please visit Net Metering Program.

SaskPower is committed to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 50% from 2005 levels by 2030, and we’re planning to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. For more information on the Government of Saskatchewan’s commitments to emissions reductions and beyond, please visit Climate Resilience in Saskatchewan.

Rates – whether related to transmission, generation or other – will continue to increase as we transition to a net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions power system. How much the rates increase will depend on how and when we’re regulated to achieve net-zero GHG emissions. We’re currently working toward achieving at net-zero power system by 2050. But if the federal Clean Electricity Regulations are passed, we would be required to reach net-zero by 2035. That would have significant impacts to rates in Saskatchewan. To put things in perspective, it has taken over 90 years to build the power system we have today. We’d be looking a replacing much of that generation in just 12 years – an expense to all SaskPower customers.

Whichever new technology or facilities are built, we will use the existing transmission infrastructure as much as possible. Proximity to transmission infrastructure is one of the key criteria we consider when siting projects.

Hello Doug, thanks for reaching out. Because we’re still early in our SMR development process, we have yet to determine what the specific detailed requirements of a facility would be. As we continue our development work to further determine the potential of SMR deployment in Saskatchewan, there will be opportunity for vendors and suppliers to learn more and participate in the procurement process. Local and provincial economic development is a top priority for this project, and if we proceed, we’ll be looking at ways to help build new supply chains in Saskatchewan.

Thanks for your question. When we evaluate potential generation options, we take a wholistic approach. We consider costs around fuel, construction, maintenance, and decommissioning. We also evaluate other factors like reliability and service life. All these factors (and others not listed here) play into a key tool called Levelized Cost of Electricity that we use, in addition to several other considerations, to help plan our future supply.