Renewable Electricity and Grid Stability

The Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) was established under the Alberta Utilities Commission Act in 2008, with a mandate to regulate the utility sectors, including electricity and natural gas, and to ensure fair and reliable service. The AUC oversees the approval of utility infrastructure projects and ensures compliance with regulatory standards. The AUC’s Rule 007, initially designed to guide the approval process for renewable energy projects, has undergone several revisions to address emerging challenges and regulatory needs. These revisions reflect the evolving landscape of renewable energy and the growing importance of incorporating municipal perspectives into the approval process.

Federal policies, including the Climate Change Plan and Clean Electricity Regulations, have influenced the Government of Alberta’s renewable energy strategies. These policies provide funding and support for renewable energy projects and set national targets for greenhouse gas reductions. Coordination between provincial and federal regulations plays a role in ensuring that Alberta’s renewable energy initiatives align with broader climate goals. We aim to balance the pursuit of broader climate goals with the well-being of our rural communities and the stability of Alberta’s electrical grid for the benefit of our people and businesses.

Alberta has increased its focus on renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power, driven by both provincial policies and federal climate commitments. Since the early 2000s, Alberta has seen significant investments in renewable energy, positioning itself as a leader in this sector within Canada. The shift towards renewable energy in Alberta has brought benefits, including increased property tax revenues for rural municipalities and job creation in local communities. However, it has also introduced large challenges such as land use conflicts, siting inequality between rural and urban municipalities, infrastructure strain, and potential environmental impacts. Municipalities have faced difficulties in balancing the benefits of renewable energy projects with concerns related to land use, agricultural productivity, and environmental preservation. There is a prevailing sentiment that the influence of our rural communities at the provincial level has been marginalized.

The AUC continues to make decisions in “the public interest” seemingly without considering the public interest pertaining to the electrical grid’s stability. An electrical grid must be reliable, resilient, and stable. At the present time, renewable energy developments do not appear able to support these requirements. As renewable energy developments are increasingly relied upon, this is problematic for Alberta’s people and businesses, which require stable electricity during all times and seasons.

Uptake of renewable energy in the grid, corresponding to increasingly distributed power generation, can lead naturally to improved grid function insofar as synchrony is concerned. However, to function, grids must be resilient to transient shocks, such as line failures or overloads. These failures can cascade through the grid, causing widespread power outages and damage.

The intended objective of this resolution is to ask the Government of Alberta to require AUC-approved renewable energy developments to contribute stated minimum electricity contributions to the grid on demand. This would create more stability, reliability, and resiliency. How this is accomplished, through means such as battery storage, third-party supply agreements, etc., would be open and up to the developer. The minimum threshold could be made relative to the size of the development.