French independent power procedure Neoen has inked a power purchase agreement (PPA) with utility Saskatchewan Power Corporation (SaskPower) covering the 157 MW Mino Giizis solar project in Saskatchewan, Canada.
Under the terms of the 25-year PPA, Neoen will sell all the electricity generated to the utility. The deal was secured following a competitive tender process initiated by a joint agreement between SaskPower and the First Nations Power Authority.
The Mino Giizis project will be Saskatchewan’s largest to date, located in the Rural Municipality of Lajord No. 128 in the south of the province.
With Neoen acting as the project developer, the asset will be co-owned under a 50% equity partnership with the Anishinabek Power Alliance, a partnership with Treaty 4 Nations: Zagime Anishinabek Nation, Kinistin Saulteaux First Nation, Cote First Nation, and the Key First Nation.
The facility is expected to come online in 2028. Neoen expects the project to also bring benefits to First Nations communities and the regional economy, with an estimated 350 construction workers anticipated during the peak construction phase.
Since establishing a Canadian office in 2022, Neoen has been developing a portfolio of solar, storage, and wind projects across Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario. Its operational portfolio includes the 93 MW Fox Coulée solar farm in Alberta, which entered commercial operations in June 2024.
SaskPower has committed to procuring 3 GW of solar and wind by 2035 and according to figures from the Canadian Renewable Energy Association (CanREA), currently has just under 1 GW of installed renewables capacity in the province.
CanREA President and CEO, Vittoria Bellissimo, commented that Saskatchewan is showing “what can be achieved when utilities and Indigenous leadership work together to build our renewable energy future.”
“This solar procurement partnership between SaskPower and First Nations Power Authority demonstrates economic reconciliation in action, to deliver long-term benefits for communities, ratepayers and the electricity system,” Bellissimo added.
In August, the Canadian government announced CAD 33 million ($23.8 million) investment in a 32 MW solar project to be built by George Gordon First Nation in Saskatchewan.
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