TransAlta cancels wind power project over new government rules on development

CALGARY — A major Alberta utility is cancelling a large wind power project because of new government rules on where such developments can be built.

TransAlta CEO John Kousinioris says the 300-megawatt Riplinger project near Cardston in southern Alberta will no longer proceed.

Kousinioris told a conference call to analysts that the reason for the decision is the provincial government's rules that create a buffer zone around protected areas and block development in what it calls pristine viewscapes.

TransAlta is also placing three other developments on hold as the government goes through a redesign of the province's electricity market.

It's the second setback this week for low-carbon energy generation in Alberta.

Electricity generator Capital Power announced Wednesday it was cancelling plans for a $2.4-billion carbon capture and storage project for its natural gas facility near Edmonton.

CEO Avik Dey said the cost of the project was too high and the regulatory environment around it too uncertain to justify going ahead.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 3, 2024.

The Canadian Press