Wind power has a history in Canada dating back many decades, particularly on prairie farms. As of December 2021, wind power generating capacity was approximately 14,304 megawatts (MW). Combined with 2,399 MW of solar power generating capacity, this provided about 6.5% of Canada's electricity demand as of 2020.[1] The Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) has outlined a future strategy for wind energy that would reach a capacity of 55 GW by 2025, meeting 20% of the country's energy needs.
PlotData= color:skyblue width:20 bar:2000 from:start till:114 text:114 bar:2005 from:start till:680 text:680 bar:2006 from:start till:1460 text:1,460 bar:2007 from:start till:1846 text:1,846 bar:2008 from:start till:2349 text:2,349 bar:2009 from:start till:3304 text:3,304 bar:2010 from:start till:3969 text:3,969 bar:2011 from:start till:5258 text:5,258 bar:2012 from:start till:6204 text:6,204 bar:2013 from:start till:7814 text:7,814 bar:2014 from:start till:9685 text:9,685 bar:2015 from:start till:11204 text:11,204 bar:2016 from:start till:11902 text:11,902 bar:2017 from:start till:12250 text:12,250 bar:2018 from:start till:12816 text:12,816 bar:2019 from:start till:13413 text:13,413 bar:2020 from:start till:13588 text:13,588 bar:2021 from:start till:14304 text:14,304 | |
| Installed wind power generating capacity since 2000 (MW)[2] [3] [4] [5] |
| Province/territory | December 2021 installed capacity (MW) | |
|---|---|---|
| Alberta | 2,178 | |
| British Columbia | 743 | |
| Manitoba | 259 | |
| New Brunswick | 355 | |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 55 | |
| Northwest Territories | 9 | |
| Nova Scotia | 616 | |
| Ontario | 5,536 | |
| Prince Edward Island | 204 | |
| Québec | 3,920 | |
| Saskatchewan | 429 | |
| Yukon | 0.8 | |
| Total | 14,304.8 |
Early development of wind energy in Canada was located primarily in Ontario, Quebec, and Alberta. Alberta built the first commercial wind farm in Canada in 1993. Throughout the late 1990s and early years of the 21st Century every Canadian province has pursued wind power to supplement their provincial energy grids.
British Columbia was the last province to add wind power to its grid with the completion of the Bear Mountain Wind Park in November 2009.[6] With increasing population growth, Canada has seen wind power as a way to diversify energy supplies away from traditional reliance on fossil fuel burning thermal plants and heavy reliance on hydroelectricity in some provinces. In provinces like Nova Scotia, where only 12% of electricity comes from renewable sources,[7] the development of wind energy projects will provide a measure of electricity security that some jurisdictions are lacking. In the case of British Columbia, wind energy will help close the electricity deficit that the province is facing into the 2010s and help reduce the reliance on importing power from other jurisdictions that may not use renewable energy sources.
An additional 2,004 megawatts of wind power is to come on stream in Quebec between 2011 and 2015. The new energy will cost 10.5 cents per kilowatt-hour, a price described as "highly competitive".[8]
Continuing 2018's growth, Canada finished 2019 with 13,413 MW of wind energy capacity - enough to power approximately 3.4 million homes. The year saw completion of five projects that added 597 MW of new installed capacity, representing over $1 billion of investment. Canada is home to the world's ninth largest wind generating fleet.
Contributors to the main power grid are Wind-Diesel and Wind-Hydrogen. Canadian examples are the community of Ramea, Newfoundland and Labrador that initially used a Wind-Diesel system and is now being converted to Wind-Hydrogen technology,[9] and a 10MW / 20MWh battery at the 66 MW Summerview II wind farm in Alberta.[10]
Canadian industry had initially started to supply major components for Wind Tower projects, Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Canada, Ltd. being one example. In more recent years, closure of these operations has also been observed.
In a survey conducted by Angus Reid Strategies in October 2007, 89 per cent of respondents said that using renewable energy sources like wind or solar power was positive for Canada, because these sources were better for the environment. Only 4 per cent considered using renewable sources as negative since they can be unreliable and expensive.[11]
According to a Saint Consulting survey in April 2007, wind power was the alternative energy source most likely to gain public support for future development in Canada, with only 16% opposed to this type of energy. By contrast, 3 out of 4 Canadiansopposed nuclear power developments.[12]
Despite this general support for the concept of wind power in the public at large, local opposition often exists, primarily from residents concerned about visual and light pollution, noise or reduced property values. The construction of wind turbines has a negative effect on rural communities, since landowners who receive payments to allow wind turbines on their land are seen as sellouts who are unconcerned with the wind turbine's effect on their neighbours. Public opposition has had the desired effect in some cases, aborting or delaying construction of wind turbines. This opposition has been described as a case of NIMBYism.[13]
Several wind farms in Canada have become tourist attractions,[14] to the surprise of the owners.
Some rural communities want Alberta to grant companies the right to develop wind farms on leased Crown land.[15]
In 2008, the Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA), a non-profit trade association, outlined a future strategy for wind energy that would reach a capacity of 55,000 MW by 2025, fulfilling 20% of the country's energy needs. The plan, Wind Vision 2025, could create over 50,000 jobs and represent around CDN$165 million annual revenue. If achieved, CanWEA's target would make the country a major player in the wind power sector and would create around CDN$79 billion of investment. It would also save an estimated 17 megatonnes of greenhouse gas emissions annually.[16]
CanWEA recommended to add 500 MW of capacity in Quebec each year from 2018 to 2025.[17]
The LRP was viewed an important tool of Ontario's commitment to reach the province's 2025 target for renewable energy to comprise about 50% of Ontario's installed capacity. Projects of more than 10 MW of capacity were eligible to obtain a 20-year contract through a price competitive auction.
The LRP program, part of the Green Energy Act (GEA), was cancelled by the government of Doug Ford, who had campaigned on terminating it.