Alberta
Alberta won the energy lottery
From the Frontier Centre for Public Policy
Some people blamed a small handful of natural gas plants being out of operation. Which is a greater concern – two of 87 gas fired units being down, or 88 of 88 wind and solar farms being down at the same time?
Alberta won the energy lottery millions of years ago. I’m not talking scratchers, but the Powerball. You know, the big American lottery that every so often is over a billion dollars?
Except Alberta’s winnings are much, much larger than that.
So why is it the weekend of Jan. 12-15, the jurisdiction that has more oil, gas and coal than God, because God gave all his to Alberta, was forced to beg its neighbours if they could spare a megawatt?
Because that’s what happened. It got so desperate the night of Saturday, Jan. 13, that the neighbours did not have another megawatt to spare. The Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) and the government of Alberta sent out an emergency alert to every cellphone and TV screen in the province, calling on people to shut off everything from stoves to bathroom fans, as well as unplug block heaters and electric vehicles.
The only way this could happen is complete and utter incompetence at the top. It started with Rachel Notley, but Jason Kenney didn’t seem to do much to reverse her moves. Only Danielle Smith seems to have finally said, “No more!”
Former Alberta premier Rachel Notley’s push to get rid of coal as soon as possible and build as much wind and solar is a prime example of incompetence. While most coal plants converted to natural gas, not all units did, and hundreds of megawatts of cheap, reliable power were lost. Meanwhile, in the last two years Alberta’s wind and solar basically doubled, projects that mostly got their start under Notley. And yet there were moments during the weekend where both wind and solar hit zero output, sometimes at same time. Wind and solar’s theoretical capacity of 6,131 megawatts was a big fat zero.
And yet when Notley announced her departure as leader of the NDP on Jan. 16, she put out a video proclaiming the elimination of coal-fired power and kickstarting renewables among her greatest accomplishments.
Some people blamed a small handful of natural gas plants being out of operation. Which is a greater concern – two of 87 gas fired units being down, or 88 of 88 wind and solar farms being down at the same time, as happened the morning of Jan. 14? Indeed, the vast majority of the 87 gas units and 2 coal units were indeed providing nearly all of Alberta’s power throughout the weekend.
Those four days saw the AESO issue four “grid alerts” in a row. The second one was a much closer-run thing. As a last resort, they put all the grid-scale batteries into play, and those batteries were running out of juice after just an hour. The contingency reserve went to effectively zero.
If the province had not issued its emergency alert, the AESO since reported they were within a half hour of calling for rotating blackouts.
Thankfully, it did work. But what about next time?
The next step was rotating blackouts, and, if that didn’t work, major load shedding. And if that wasn’t enough, a replay of Texas, February, 2021, when 246 died. Except there would be more bodies, because it’s a hell of a lot colder here.
Lessons
There are some lessons from that weekend, and especially Saturday:
- Wind and solar totally and utterly fail when we need power the most.
- Do NOT expect your neighbour to be able to help you out. Often they can, and do. But as we saw Jan. 13, when your boat is sinking, your neighbour’s may be sinking faster. This was evident by the small amount of power BC sent Alberta. They routinely send 3x that. Montana was sending effectively nothing. And even though Saskatchewan was maxed out in sending what we had, it was not enough to bail out Alberta. Interties are good in many ways, but they must not be entirely relied upon.
- As a result, each jurisdiction must ensure it has ample supply within its own borders and control. And that includes enough dispatchable power to backfill every single megawatt of wind and solar, plus the possible loss of one of its baseload units. That 4 per cent contingency reserve is really not enough.
- If Alberta did go into rotating blackouts:
- What would have happened if that half hour turned out into half a day, or longer, with the temperature at -35 C as it was in Calgary? How many lives might be on the line? What would the property loss be, from things like frozen pipes?
- Whose head would the public be calling for on Monday morning? Oh wait, there was a fourth grid alert that morning.
- Alberta has more than five million vehicles registered. What would have happened if five million EVs were all plugged in that weekend?
- We cannot, we must not, allow this to happen here in Saskatchewan, or again in Alberta. But yet SaskPower keeps saying we’re going to build an additional 3,000 megawatts of wind and solar. We are on Alberta’s path. Alberta already has 6,131 megawatts of wind and solar. How’s that working out for them? Friday night – 6 megawatts. Saturday night – 90. Sunday morning, zero.
Fossil fuels account for up to 94 per cent of Alberta’s and 89 per cent of Saskatchewan’s power on any given day. We cannot, must not, allow ourselves to think any amount of wind and solar can keep us alive when the temperatures hit -35 C. That weekend in Alberta proved it.
Brian Zinchuk is editor an owner of Pipeline Online and occasional contributor to the Frontier Centre for Public Policy. He can be reached at [email protected].
Alberta’s government will develop a Passenger Rail Master Plan as the foundation to advancing passenger rail in the province.
Since the early days of Alberta’s development, the province has been shaped by the iron rails that crisscross its landscape. The arrival of the transcontinental railway in the late 19th century brought about profound changes to the way of life, facilitating trade, settlement, and economic prosperity. Towns and cities sprung up along the tracks, serving as vital hubs for commerce and transportation.
Today, the legacy of rail continues to shape Alberta and the rest of Canada. While the modes of transportation may have evolved, the spirit of innovation and connectivity remains as strong as ever. As Alberta experiences record population growth and evolving transportation needs, advancing passenger rail infrastructure is essential for enhancing accessibility, efficiency, and connectivity across the province.
Alberta’s Passenger Rail Master Plan will look forward decades and identify concrete actions that can be taken now as well as in the future to build the optimal passenger rail system for the province. The Master Plan will assess the feasibility of passenger rail in the province, including regional (inter-city), commuter and high-speed services.
“A large and efficient passenger rail network stretching across the province has incredible potential. It represents a forward-looking vision and is a mobility solution for our rapidly growing province and I’m excited to watch this plan take shape and bring us into the future. There’s a lot of work ahead of us, but I’m confident that we will build the network Albertans need to improve daily life and work, boost the economy and take away the stress of long-distance travel.”
“Alberta already has significant public mass transit systems in Calgary and Edmonton for the provincial passenger rail system to build upon. The Master Plan will be a vital tool to guide the province on the next steps in advancing passenger rail. It will provide certainty to the rail sector and ensure the most effective use of tax dollars and government authorities. We look forward to hearing from Albertans and working with municipalities, Indigenous communities and the private sector in advancing passenger rail in the province.”
Passenger rail services connected to urban mass transit shapes and strengthens regional transportation systems, connects communities, supports jobs and the economy and improves access to housing.
“Canada’s railways appreciate the Alberta government’s efforts to conduct a fact-based study on the potential for passenger rail service that recognizes the essential need to protect current and future freight rail capacity. Any proposal to co-locate passenger service in freight corridors must demonstrate the ability to preserve the freight rail capacity required to move goods in support of the province’s economy, today and tomorrow. Rail is the greenest mode of ground transportation for both people and goods.”
The government’s vision is for an Alberta passenger rail system that includes public, private or hybrid passenger rail, including:
- a commuter rail system for the Calgary area that connects surrounding communities and the Calgary International Airport to downtown;
- a commuter rail system for the Edmonton area that connects surrounding communities and the Edmonton International Airport to downtown;
- regional rail lines from Calgary and Edmonton to the Rocky Mountain parks;
- a regional rail line between Calgary and Edmonton, with a local transit hub in Red Deer;
- municipal-led LRT systems in Calgary and Edmonton that integrate with the provincial passenger rail system; and
- rail hubs serving the major cities that would provide linkages between a commuter rail system, regional rail routes and municipal-led mass transit systems.
The vision includes a province-led “Metrolinx-like” Crown corporation with a mandate to develop the infrastructure and oversee daily operations, fare collection/booking systems, system maintenance, and planning for future system expansion.
“At VIA Rail our vision for integrated mobility means dreaming of a future where a passenger can easily switch between commuter rail, light transit, transit buses, and regional trains in an agile and simple way. We’ve already initiated a number of exchanges with partners, and we intend to step up the pace in the coming months and years. I can assure you that as integrated mobility becomes an increasingly important topic of conversation in Alberta, VIA Rail will be there to play a unifying role.”
Alberta’s Passenger Rail Master Plan will ensure government has the required information to make decisions based on where passenger rail delivers the best return on investment. The plan will provide a cost-benefit analysis and define what is required by government, including a governance and delivery model, legislation, funding, and staging to implement passenger rail in Alberta. This work will include a 15-year delivery plan that will prioritize and sequence investments.
“We are excited to see the province taking the next step in committing to regional and intercity rail. This Passenger Rail Master Plan aims to set out a vision for a comprehensive rail network in our province that’s long overdue. We are thrilled to see this process move forward.”
The Master Plan will take into account future growth, planning for the growing provincial population and considering the use of hydrogen-powered trains to ensure a robust and effective passenger rail system to serve Albertans for years to come.
Development of the Master Plan will include engagement with Albertans to gain their perspectives for the future of passenger rail in Alberta.
Alberta’s government has released a Request for Expression of Interest to seek world-class knowledge and consultant services as a first step toward the development of the Passenger Rail Master Plan for Alberta. Following this process, a Request for Proposal will be issued to select a consultant to develop the Passenger Rail Master Plan. The Master Plan is expected to be completed by summer 2025.
Quick facts
- Passenger rail includes:
- Commuter rail – passenger rail that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or surrounding commuter towns, and is often traditional heavy-rail
- Regional rail – passenger rail that operates beyond the limits of urban areas and provides inter-city passenger rail transport services and can be traditional heavy-rail or high-speed rail
- Light-rail transit (LRT) – urban passenger rail transit that typically operates small, frequent train service in an urban area. Calgary and Edmonton use LRT as part of their mass transit systems
- Passenger rail in Alberta is currently limited to two tourism-focused services, VIA Rail and Rocky Mountaineer, and LRT in Calgary and Edmonton.
- Budget 2024 includes $9 million to support the development of the Passenger Rail Master Plan this year.
News release from the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team (ALERT)
ALERT’s Human Trafficking unit has searched and closed three Calgary massage parlours. A year-long investigation has linked the businesses and its owner to suspected human trafficking.
ALERT arrested Hai (Anna) Yan Ye on April 16, 2024 and charged the 48-year-old with advertising sexual services, drug offences and firearms offences. The investigation remains ongoing and further charges are being contemplated.
Ye was linked to three commercial properties and two homes that were allegedly being used for illegal sexual activities and services. The massage parlours were closed following search warrant executions carried out by ALERT, the Calgary Police Service, and the RCMP:
- Seagull Massage at 1034 8 Avenue SW;
- 128 Massage at 1935 37 Street SW; and
- The One Massage Centre at 1919 31 Street SE.
- 1100-block of Hidden Valley Drive; and
- 3100-block of 12 Avenue SW.
As result of the search warrants, ALERT also seized:
- $15,000 in suspected proceeds of crime;
- Shotgun with ammunition; and
- Various amounts of drugs.
“We believe that these were immigrants being exploited into the sex trade. This has been a common trend that takes advantage of their unfamiliarity and vulnerability,” said Staff Sergeant Gord MacDonald, ALERT Human Trafficking.
Four suspected victims were identified and provided resources by ALERT’s Safety Network Coordinators.
ALERT’s investigation dates back to February 2023 when a tip was received about suspicious activity taking place at the since-closed Moonlight Massage. That location was closed during the investigation, in December 2023, when the landlord identified illegal suites on the premises.
The investigation involved the close cooperation with City of Calgary Emergency Management and Community Safety, Alberta’s Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods (SCAN) team, Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), and the RCMP.
Ye was released from custody on a number of court-imposed conditions.
Anyone with information about this investigation, or any case involving suspected human trafficking offences, is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or the Calgary Police Service non-emergency line at 403-266-1234.
ALERT was established and is funded by the Alberta Government and is a compilation of the province’s most sophisticated law enforcement resources committed to tackling serious and organized crime.
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