OTTAWA (Reuters) —Alberta’s restrictions on some renewable projects could hurt $11.1 billion in investments and stall up to 6.3 gigawatts of solar and wind power capacity, a study has said.
The new rules can potentially impact 42 projects valued at more than $11 billion and several thousand jobs, the Pembina Institute, an Alberta-based clean energy think tank, said in the study.
Last month, the province placed tight restrictions on renewable power projects planned on prime agricultural land and also ordered creating buffer zones so that wind turbines do not spoil scenic views.
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The provincial government has, however, said exceptions would be made if developers can show crops or livestock can exist alongside the project.
Canada is the world’s fourth largest oil producer, with Alberta contributing 80 percent of the country’s total production. The province is also a leader in renewables and accounts for more than three-quarters of the country’s total output.
The ban has attracted criticisms from local companies that have claimed the new rules would create business uncertainty and jeopardize billions in investments, threatening to move to other provinces or the United States.
It has also put premier Danielle Smith’s provincial government at loggerheads with prime minister Justin Trudeau, whose Liberal party is drafting regulations to make provinces eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from their grids on a net basis by 2035.
Out of a total of 111 solar and 34 wind projects proposed in Alberta, 36 solar projects and six wind projects, which are either proposed or awaiting approval, could be affected, the study said.
These projects can potentially double Alberta’s current renewable capacity, it said.
