The province has approved nine new wind-energy projects, including one that will be located between Ashcroft and Logan Lake, and has said that in order to expedite them, the projects will not be subject to environmental assessments.
Adrian Dix, B.C.’s minister of energy and climate solutions, made the announcement on Dec. 9. The nine projects will cumulatively generate between $5 billion and $6 billion in private capital spending, and Dix said that waiving the need for environmental assessment means they will be able to advance through development, construction, and completion faster, delivering clean power to the grid sooner.
"We need these new energy generation projects urgently to meet growing demand for power and accelerate our efforts to build a prosperous and inclusive clean economy," said Dix in a statement.
"Now that the projects have been selected, we're going to work together with BC Hydro, First Nations, and proponents to get these projects built quickly, responsibly, and efficiently, and get those turbines spinning."
All nine of the projects are expected to be operational by 2031, and together will provide nearly 5,000 gigawatt hours of electricity per year: enough to power about 500,000 homes, and boosting BC Hydro’s current supply by eight per cent.
First Nations hold majority ownership of eight of the nine projects, and the province says that First Nations interests and environmental mitigations will be protected and maintained.
Four of the projects are in northern B.C., four are in southern B.C., and one is on Vancouver Island. The nine successful projects were among 21 proposals received after a call for clean power in April 2024, and the province said that the cost of wind power has dropped significantly since the last call for clean power in 2010.
The Highland Valley Wind Project is a partnership between Capstone Infrastructure and the Ashcroft Indian Band. The project size (in megawatts) is 197. Capstone is also partnering with the Lower Nicola Indian Band on the Mount Mabel Wind Project, which will have a project size of 143 MW and be located east of Highway 5 between Merritt and Lac Le Jeune.
Capstone Infrastructure is a developer, owner, and operator of clean and renewable energy facilities, with approximately 885 MW installed capacity across 35 facilities. These include wind, hydro, solar, battery energy storage, biomass, and natural gas congregation facilities
