One of Canada’s largest solar projects is coming to Saskatchewan
By Adam Freill
Construction InfrastructureIyuhána Solar, a GSI-led partnership with Saturn Power Inc. and Ocean Man First Nation, to develop solar utility PPA.
(CNW Group/Greenwood Sustainable Infrastructure (GSI))
A 100-megawatt, utility-scale solar facility is coming to Saskatchewan. Greenwood Sustainable Infrastructure LLC (GSI), one of the renewable energy subsidiaries of Libra Group, has announced that Iyuhána Solar (Iyuhána), a GSI-led partnership with Saturn Power Inc. and Ocean Man First Nation, has been awarded a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) to construct and operate the facility. Once in operation, the project will be one of Canada’s 10 largest solar facilities.
Under an exclusive PPA, the largest with a utility in Canada since 2015, Iyuhána plans to invest approximately $200 million to construct the solar facility, which it will operate, supplying generated power to the principal municipal utility company, SaskPower, for 25 years. Located in the Rural Municipality of Estevan in southeast Saskatchewan, the emissions-free solar facility will produce enough power for the equivalent of approximately 25,000 homes.
“We are proud to bring the transformative power of solar energy to Saskatchewan by working with partners such as Ocean Man First Nation,” said Mazen Turk, CEO of GSI. “This unique collaboration shows the power of renewable energy to harness resources and empower communities responsibly. This work is core to our ethos as a Libra company, and we look forward to continuing to help support a clean energy future across Canada and beyond.”
As a founding partner, Ocean Man First Nation will have an ownership stake in Iyuhána Solar. Band members will also receive specialized training to maintain the solar facilities and employment opportunities with the project. Additionally, partnering with two of Saskatchewan’s leading post-secondary academic institutions, Iyuhána will provide scholarships, internships, and direct research projects in clean energy to benefit the community.
“Our partnership with GSI and SaskPower will bring great opportunities for Ocean Man First Nation, including employment and revenue that will provide stability and sustainability for our Band,” said Chief Connie Big Eagle, Ocean Man First Nation. “We are proud that this project, which is able to generate clean power, will be known as Iyuhána Solar, which, in Nakotah translates to ‘everyone’ or ‘all of us.’ This is derived from our Nakotah belief that everyone and everything is related and therefore we must care for each other.”
While investment in renewable energy grows across Canada, Saskatchewan’s clean power supply mix has predominantly consisted of hydro and wind. This is the first of many planned solar projects in the province; by 2035, SaskPower plans to support approximately 3000 MW of new renewable energy capacity in the region.
“This new solar facility will play an important role in our path to net-zero by 2050 or sooner,” said Rupen Pandya, SaskPower president and CEO. “We are proud of our ongoing collaboration with Indigenous peoples and the critical role they are playing in the successful expansion of renewable energy in our province.”
