This was the opening splash for a video clip posted by the Alberta energy minister on social media. Two days later, its power output at noon was barely 11 per cent. YouTube/Canadian Energy Centre

From PipelineOnline.ca

And wind was doing even worse

Even though Alberta’s build-out of 38 wind farms and 36 solar farms have resulted in an enormous growth of nameplate power generating capacity, the reality was far from the advertised on Sunday, according to data from the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO).

Despite the noon hour being defined as the sun being at its highest point in the sky, Alberta’s grid-scale solar facilities were having a tough day on Oct. 22. At 11:53 a.m., solar was producing 152 megawatts out of an installed base of 1,292 megawatts. That was 11.8 per cent of capacity. On a good day, that number is closer to 1,000 megawatts around noon.

It wasn’t hard to figure out why solar hand tanked. A belt of heavy clouds, visible from Environment and Climate Change Canada satellite imagery, blanketed the principle solar power production region of southern Alberta.

Travers, the largest solar facility in Canada with a rated capacity of 465 megawatts and having cost $700 million, was producing 51 megawatts a few minutes before noon. That was 10.9 per cent. Ironically, Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean had posted on LinkedIn on Oct. 20, “Did you know Alberta is home to Canada’s largest solar farm? Once we set clear rules around land use, reclamation and transmission, we’ll get back to work leading Canada and the world on renewable electricity. I’m proud of our energy workers. Check out this incredible clip 👇”

That 22 second video clip was originally posted by the Canadian Energy Centre, the Alberta government’s “war room,” whose mission is to set the record straight, as it were. “The Canadian Energy Centre’s mandate is to promote Canada as the supplier of choice for the world’s growing demand for responsibly produced energy,” says the Centre’s mandate.

Wind peters out

And wind power production was having an even worse day, with wind power plummeting as the morning turned into afternoon. By that time, wind was generating just 67 megawatts out of an installed based of 3,853 megawatts. That’s just 1.7 per cent of nameplate capacity.

So at that moment, combined wind and solar were producing 219 megawatts out of a nameplate capacity of 5,145, or 4.3 per cent of capacity.

Alberta’s final remaining coal-fired power facility was producing 802 of 820 megawatts of nameplate capacity, or 97.8 per cent. And its power output was 3.7 times the total output of all grid-scale wind and solar across Alberta, from 36 solar farms and 38 wind facilities, composed of hundreds of turbines and costing billions of dollars. As noted above, Travers, alone, cost $700 million and covers 3,330 acres with 1.3 million solar panels.

That last remaining coal plant, the Genesee Power Station, will soon be converted to natural gas, meaning an end to coal-fired power generation in Alberta – a province whose coal reserves run from Edmonton southwest to the BC and US borders.

The wind situation stayed much the same throughout the afternoon, and by 4:18, solar had dropped to 69 megawatts and wind was just 83 megawatts.

And near the supper hour, X bot account @ReliableAB noted AESO data showing wind was producing 86 megawatts and solar was producing 28 megawatts. At that moment, fossil fuels, principally natural gas, accounted 94.3 per cent of Alberta’s electricity. Alberta was getting 345 megawatts of power from imports, and batteries were contributing zero megawatts.

At this moment 94.3% of Alberta's electricity is being produced by fossil fuels. Wind is at 2.2% of capacity and producing 0.9% of total generation, while solar is at 2.2% of capacity and producing 0.29% of total generation. At the same time we are importing 345 MW or 3% pic.twitter.com/3gCrbqKvaI

— Reliable AB Energy (@ReliableAB) October 22, 2023

That 94.3 per cent is significant, because the federal government’s clean electricity regulations will require “unabated” fossil fuel power generation to shut down by 2035, with the exception that unabated natural gas generation could be used for up to 450 hours per year, per generator. As Premier Danielle Smith has pointed out, those hours would have been used up by the end of January in the calendar year of 2023, meaning by this time of year, Alberta’s grid, if those regulations were followed to the letter, would effectively be in almost total blackout. And to compound the situation, not only does the federal government expect provinces like Alberta and Saskatchewan to replace all that power generation in 11 years, two months and nine days, but also be on the path of increasing total power generation by a factor of 2.5x in 26 years, two months and nine days.

News release from Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team (ALERT)

Sex trade worker allegedly drugged, robbed victim

Charges have been laid against a sex trade worker for allegedly drugging and robbing at least one Calgary victim.

Jessica Kane is charged with robbery, overcome resistance by administering a drug, and four counts of breach of a release order. ALERT’s Human Trafficking unit alleges that the 31-year-old woman committed these offences while on bail for similar charges in British Columbia.

Kane is currently in custody in British Columbia and is in the middle of court proceedings for similar offences that took place in that jurisdiction. An Alberta warrant was granted on September 29, 2023 and will be summarily executed at a later date.

The Calgary offences allegedly took place in October 2022 when Kane was purportedly working in the Calgary sex-trade. A Calgary man reported to police that he was drugged and robbed by a woman he met on a sex-trade website.

ALERT’s nearly year-long investigation revealed that Kane was suspected of working in the Calgary area between October and December 2022, in contravention of her bail conditions. ALERT believes there are additional victims in Alberta, who may have been reluctant to come forward at the time.

Kane would have used one of her aliases, which may have included: Claudia, Maria, Kara, Kimmy, Bambi, Ava, Lexa, Hazel, Honey, Mia, Becca, Angel, Heidi, Meghan, Natalie and Alexis.

Anyone with information about this offence is asked to call Calgary Police Service non-emergency line at 403-266-1234, their local police of jurisdiction, or contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). Crime Stoppers is always anonymous.

Kane was first arrested by Surrey RCMP in September 2022 and charged with a series of alleged druggings and a manslaughter offence. Court-imposed release conditions forbade her from engaging in sex trade work.

Read the Surrey RCMP news release.

ALERT received assistance on the investigation from the Calgary Police Service, Surrey RCMP, Pitt Meadows RCMP, and the RCMP Forensic Laboratory.

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.