Stirling Wind Project

Stirling Wind Project

Location: Five kilometres northeast of the Village of Stirling, Alberta
Capacity: 113 MW
energy storage: Wind Energy

About the Stirling Wind Project

The Stirling Wind Project (SWP) began development in 2007 and it is located five kilometres northeast of the Village of Stirling. The SWP received an Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) approval for the 113-megawatt (MW) wind power plant, and a permit and licence for the Red Coat Substation in April 2019. In Spring 2021, Stirling Renewable Energy LP (SRELP) submitted a Letter of Enquiry (LOE) to the AUC to address changes made to the SWP (see details in the Spring 2021 newsletter), and the changes received approval from the AUC in December 2021.

Construction at the SWP began in May 2022 and was completed in October 2023. Construction of the SWP includes the following activities:

  • Erection of twenty-three (23) Siemens Gamesa 5.0MW wind turbines,
  • Installing an underground electrical collection system and collector substation (the Red Coat Substation),
  • Construction of new turbine access roads and upgrading some existing roads,
  • Construction of temporary laydown areas, and
  • Building a permanent Operations and Maintenance (O&M) building.

The SWP will connect to Alberta’s electrical grid through a newly constructed transmission line from SWP’s Red Coat Substation along township road 72 and connecting to the existing AltaLink transmission line along Range Road 192. A layout map of the SWP is available here.

Project Updates

Turbine components are beginning to arrive on site and deliveries will continue into August. A map showing delivery haul route is available in the May 2023 newsletter.

Construction activities resumed in March 2023 and will be in full swing until the end of the year. In the spring, we will begin installing collector lines, finish pouring the remaining turbine foundations, and begin erecting turbines by early summer.

 

As of December 15th, construction activities have officially wrapped up for the year. This year we completed constructing all the turbine access roads, poured 13 turbine foundations, and began constructing the Project substation. Construction activities will resume in March 2023 and be in full swing until the end of next year.

Civil construction is progressing as planned and will continue into the winter months as weather allows. All turbine access roads have been constructed and the Substation is near completion. 10 of the turbine foundations were excavated, 4 of which have now been poured with concrete. There is a slight increase in traffic compared to the Summer as concrete trucks are delivering material to the turbine foundations. Construction is anticipated to shut down for winter around the beginning of December.

SRELP hosted an open house on May 4, 2022, to provide information on upcoming construction activities. A copy of the open house presentation can be found here. Construction at the SWP began in May 2022.

SRELP has received approval from the AUC for the SWP and SWP II, as well as the proposed changes outlined in the LOE. Construction at the SWP is anticipated to begin in Spring 2022. The SWP II is still proceeding through the AESO interconnection process. A virtual open house will be hosted for the two projects in early Spring 2022.

SRELP is preparing a Letter of Enquiry (LOE) to submit to the AUC for the SWP, which will address the recent changes made to the project, including having selected a new turbine manufacturer and model and splitting the project into two phases. Details of these changes and updates are available in the latest newsletter.

In December 2018, the Stirling Wind Project was selected for a contract in round 2 of the Alberta Electric System Operator’s (AESO) Renewable Electricity Program (REP). As part of REP 2, Stirling Wind Project Limited Partnership (SWLP) partnered with the Paul First Nation Renewable Energy Limited Partnership and a new legal entity, Stirling Renewable Energy Limited Partnership (SRELP), was created.

In April 2019, the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) issued approvals for the power plant, substation, and transmission line. Subsequently, SRELP modified the turbine technology for the Project, reduced the number of turbines, and modified associated project infrastructure, ultimately reducing the overall Project footprint. SRELP intends to submit the proposed changes to the AUC for approval in Q3 2019.

Stirling Wind Project Limited Partnership (SWLP) modified the proposed turbine technology, reduced the number of turbines, and modified associated project infrastructure, reducing the overall project footprint. The AUC applications will be amended with the proposed Project changes in the near future. SWLP unsuccessfully bid into the first round of the Alberta Electric System Operator’s (AESO) Renewable Electricity Program (REP) but intends to participate in future rounds.

On April 7, 2017, Stirling Wind Project LP (SWLP) submitted applications to the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) under Rule 007 and Rule 012, seeking approval to build and operate the powerplant, substation, and interconnection.

Potentia Renewables Inc. entered into a partnership with Greengate Power Corporation for the Stirling Wind Project. A special-purpose entity, Stirling Wind Project Limited Partnership (SWLP) was created for the Stirling Wind Project.

Contact the Stirling Wind Team

Stirling Renewable Energy LP
ATTN: Mike Wozney
+1 (403) 996-1937
73012 Range Road 183
Stirling AB T0K 2E0