Tag Archives: solar power

SaskPower’s War On Solar

Posted on by John Klein

SaskPower told me last decade that their Y2K test of solar panel technology at the time convinced them there was no utility future for solar. Never mind that the tech was already more than a decade old at that point, and costs had dropped while efficiency of the panels had risen significantly.

Over 4 years ago they promised to build a 10MW array of solar panels. They’ve yet to deliver. Instead, they dealt a body blow to the solar installer industry in the province by cancelling Net Metering and replacing it later with Net Billing. This is in large part to the governing party of Saskatchewan taking corporate donations that would be illegal in the rest of Canada.

The Crown utility has lied about solar technology on Twitter even. They can’t be trusted, and that’s a damn shame, because we could be at a near 100% solar grid by now if we started building 6 years ago like I and others proposed.

I Was Worried For a Moment

Posted on by John Klein

When I saw Google/Pocket recommending this article on batteries for the grid, I was a bit concerned. It was contrary to what I understood to be the truth, so I read a bit to get a sense if it was new information. It turned out to be 4-2 year old information, and seems to favour fossil fuels and nuclear. It’s safe to discount as FUD, at this point.

“This article was originally published on July 27, 2018, by MIT Technology Review, and is republished here with permission.”

Fluctuating solar and wind power require lots of energy storage, and lithium-ion batteries seem like the obvious choice—but they are far too expensive to play a major role.

MIT Technology Review |

  • James Temple

It’s simply old information. Obsolete.
A coworker last night sent me this story about batteries as a huge success on the grid.
Yes, a peaker battery isn’t the same as 100% battery, but no one is saying that the entire supply should rely on only batteries.

Battery prices are falling at a pace of 22% per year for the last decade. Imagine what they’ll cost in 2022, in only 2 more years?

Minister of SaskPower, Duncan, Should Resign

Posted on by John Klein

I don’t think I’ve ever called for a Minister to resign before, while on the radio, but Duncan should definitely quit screwing up Saskatchewan, SaskPower, and our environment.

SaskPower Cancels Solar Power in Saskatchewan

Posted on by John Klein

SaskPower has yet to build a mere Megawatt of solarpower, but has now canceled the ability of solar installers to accept new work in the province. They went way farther than the cancellation of the rebate I warned readers about back in June. The Net Metering program has allowed hundreds of people to add more renewable solar power to our grid than the inept, anti-solar Crown Corporation ever has.

Not to brag, but I produce more solar power than SaskPower. I also out-produce the City of Regina after they’ve been studying the idea of producing solar power for over 2 years. I make more electricity from the sun than the climate-denying Government of Saskatchewan does on its  buildings in the capital city of Regina. Regina, by the way, ranks in the top 10 cities in the world for solar power potential. And I make more than Ralph Goodale and Catherine McKenna’s green-friendly Liberal Government of Canada does on its buildings in Regina too. In short, they all suck, and I don’t suck as much.

People who shouldn’t be making the big decisions, are. The people need to stop electing boneheads who couldn’t pass a Grade 10 science class to save their lives. It would help if we’d make it illegal for elected parties to take money from oil companies too.

Speak up and let your neighbour, or friend, or co-worker know that you’re aware they don’t want to hear your political opinion, but you’re scared if things devolve any further you’ll have beef force fed to you by roving gangs of insane cattle ranchers dressed all in Green and White soon.

“I cannot wrap my head around this.” – Young

When a political decision makes no sense, like shutting down solar in Saskatchewan, you can assume it’s either due to incompetence, or due to corruption. And we’ve already confirmed that political parties take money from oil companies in Saskatchewan, and  oppose sensible actions to combat the climate crisis.

SaskPower Cutting Solar Funding Instead of Cheques

Posted on by John Klein

Despite a ticking clock to cut emissions drastically, SaskPower is opting to continue to burn low grade coal instead of support faster adoption of solar power. They’re cutting a successful Net Metering rebate system 2 years early.

There’s a promise by the wildly anti-environment SaskParty, even during Brad Wall’s years, to cut power generation back to only 50% fossil fueled, by 2030. It makes zero sense for SaskPower to remove an incentive for its customers to help it reach that objective earlier.
UPDATE: It’s even worse than the incentive going away, all new applications for solar and wind isn’t being accepted now!

Civic Hatchback vs. LEAF Hatchback

Posted on by John Klein

Should you buy a Honda gas burner, or a pure electric Nissan if you need a family hatchback motor vehicle?

“2019 Civic hatchback and coupe models are priced […] at $20,150US and $19,350US, respectively. The base trim includes features like a rearview camera, Bluetooth, a 5-inch display screen, and a USB port.”

Currency exchange is about 1.34 to CAD right now, so that’s 20150*1.34 = $27000$26,265 (price updated Apr 27, 2019)

My used Nissan LEAF 2014 (bought 2 years ago), with the same technology features listed above plus rear heated seats, and heated steering wheel (handy in Winter): $15,500. At my old place, I had 8 solar panels which cost $8400 installed. Together that’s $23,900.

Now, I’m no financial genius, but a solar powered hatchback that costs $2365 less than a new gas burning hatchback, seems like a better idea.

Doubting sorts might question, can a $8400, 2kW solar array really power a Nissan LEAF. That’s a great question! The answer is complicated. The short answer is yes.

Using a Bluetooth OBDII car-computer reading gizmo to read the LEAF’s battery status with my phone and the app Leaf Spy Lite, it reveals the car’s battery has 20kWh of capacity, down from its brand new 24kWh selling point.

Using the Solar Edge website, I was able to determine that my array in March would typically produce more than 10kWh per day. That electricity is instantly used in the house, the EV if plugged in to charge, and the excess goes into the grid. The power company, SaskPower, provides a credit 1-for-1 for the electricity provided vs. taken from their grid in a set year. This is known as Net Metering.

(UPDATE Oct. 2019: The backwards Sask Party has ended Net Metering in Saskatchewan, there’s now a 0.5-for-1 credit instead. It may still be economical to get solar to offset an EV use,  but rerun your calculations.)

My household tends to charge the LEAF to 100% overnight on the regular wall plug (slow Level 1 charging this is called), and use it to about 50% capacity during the following day. That means it needs ~10kWh put back into it at night.  Astute readers will note that’s about how much power the panels are producing.

The LEAF doesn’t need gasoline, or oil changes. You can “fill” it at home on a regular wall plug. Why are people still buying new Civics? If they routinely travel more than 100km in the city in a day, or 70km at top highway speeds, the Civic might be more appealing, but it’s obviously more expensive and harder on your lungs and our planet’s creatures.

Now, if you want to save even more money, and more creatures, I have another tip for you:

SaskPower Is Going To Miss Target

Posted on by John Klein
March 16, 2017
Dear Editor,
People should be asking how SaskPower intends to meet the 50% renewable electricity by 2030 target set by the Premier over a year ago. Since that announcement, a 350 MegaWatt (MW) natural gas burning plant has been planned for opening in 2019. A 170 MW wind installation is planned for southwest Saskatchewan. This week SaskPower is consulting with Saskatchewanians about a proposed 60 MW solar addition to the grid by 2021. And 1 MW of natural gas created by human activity at the Regina landfill, has just come online this month.
According to SaskPower, over 90% of the power produced within Saskatchewan comes from fossil fuel sources. We import hydro from Manitoba, and generate some in Saskatchewan. A bit more hydroelectricity is planned at Tazi Twe, to add 50 MW by 2019. A little more at Saskatoon’s delayed river hydro project.
Not to bore you with basic math, but 350-170-60-50+1 = 71 MW more will come from burning fossil fuels to be added to the grid within the next 4 years. Their “Renewables Roadmap” lists only 210 MW more for wind and solar to be called for by this quarter in their Request for Proposals. This leaves a huge renewable electricity shortfall to be fixed in the remaining 9 years. Does SaskPower have an answer to this? Does the Premier? Are they hoping no one notices?

North Dakota Wind Beats Saskatchewan Coal

Posted on by John Klein

Want to verify these numbers?

But what does Saskatchewan’s government and Crown power corp do?
350MW more Gas is next. And they chased away the biggest local wind power proponent.

SaskPower’s Power To Grow A Nose

Posted on by John Klein

SaskPower’s latest consultant on renewable energy might be Pinocchio.

Their misinformation about renewable energy intentionally leaves out the point that our power mix is not entirely coal, hydro, or natural gas today, so it wouldn’t make sense to power every aspect of our grid with only PV solar which presently depends upon storage to deliver power on very cloudy days and at night. We can however, use solar to reach 100% renewable power on our grid’s mix. I’ve previously outlined two plausible ways this could be done with existing technology.

Canada 100% Renewable Electricity by 2030?

Posted on by John Klein

Read this, and think of Energy East pipeline Brad Wall is pushing hard for.

Most of the globe’s coal, natural gas and oil investments will ultimately be affected by the transition, Seba suggest, at risk of becoming “stranded assets” — resources that lose their value before the expected end of their economic life.

“They are going to be stranded over the next five to 15 years,” he maintains. “It’s not going to take us over 40 years.”

Saskatchewan could strand assets, or we could build the future starting now.

Solutions Project calculates that 70 per cent of all the net new electricity generation in the U.S. last year was from wind and solar; another 25 per cent came from natural gas.

Meanwhile in Europe, Jacobson says if you look at the net gains minus losses, “100 per cent of new generation was from clean-energy sources.”

Here are some figures regarding present energy and electricity use across Canada.

And here’s a cool one about solar:

“At this point, 20 U.S. states have reached what economists call “grid parity” for solar power: the point at which solar energy costs no more than fossil fuels. Energy research company GTM estimates 42 states will reach that point by 2020.”

Stanford business professor Tony Seba, …whose advice has been sought in boardrooms from Tokyo to Paris, is confident that solar and wind are key to sweeping away the industrial age of transportation and energy — and fast. He suggests we can reach that magic number of 100 per cent within 15 years.

“The solar-installed capacity has doubled every two years since the year 2000. Doubled every two years,” he says. “If you keep doubling that capacity, all you need is seven more doublings in order for solar to be 100 per cent of the world’s energy supply.”

For math lightweights, that’s 7 times 2 years. 14 years from now is 2030. If you go out tonight and get pregnant, by the time the child becomes a teenager, Canada could have no coal plants, or natural gas plants in operation to produce our electricity. That’s awesome!