Hydro-Québec presents wind power development strategy

Following a wide-range consultation on its Action Plan 2035, it is clear that First Nations and municipalities want direct participation in wind power projects within a development model that includes better planning and co-ordination.

In concrete terms, the development strategy includes the following elements:

• Large scale projects will be carried out to quickly roll out 10 000 MW of new generation and reduce costs thanks to economies of scale.
• Municipalities and First Nations will actively participate in projects as partners right from the outset. As shareholders, they will be able draw recurrent, autonomous income that can be allocated to priorities of their choosing.
• Orderly planning of the whole energy system, in particular with the development of the transmission system.
• Hydro-Québec will act as shareholder and maître-d’oeuvre for the overall planning and development of large scale projects, as well for subsequent steps. In collaboration with its partners, Hydro-Québec could then use a competitive process to capitalise on the expertise of wind energy players.

“We’ve been listening, and we believe that by leveraging our role as a public institution, our strategy will help us, with our partners, reach the ambitious target of 10 000 MW,” said Michael Sabia, President and CEO of Hydro-Québec. “The fundamental goal of our approach is to ensure that public, private, union and community efforts are well coordinated, for the benefit of all Quebecers. We believe that this strategy is the best way to develop wind power in a socially acceptable way, and at the lowest possible cost.”

Calls for tender will continue to be the preferred approach for smaller scale pro-jects. Industry partners will participate in such projects, whose scale will be comparable to those carried out over the past 20 years, with an installed capacity of up to 300 – 350 MW. Hydro-Québec will ensure, in advance, that the target communities are willing to welcome them.

For more news and technical articles from the global renewable industry, read the latest issue of Energy Global magazine.

Energy Global's Spring 2024 issue

The Spring 2024 issue of Energy Global starts with a guest comment from Field on how battery storage sites can serve as a viable solution to curtailed energy, before moving on to a regional report from Théodore Reed-Martin, Editorial Assistant, Energy Global, looking at the state of renewables in Europe. This issue also hosts an array of technical articles on electrical infrastructure, turbine and blade monitoring, battery storage technology, coatings, and more.

Read the article online at: https://www.energyglobal.com/wind/03062024/hydro-qubec-presents-wind-power-development-strategy/