Greening my World

Friday, May 4, 2012

MB hydro plans

Manitoba

Avg. price: 7.1¢/kWh (2nd-lowest among provinces)

2010 capacity: 5,620 MW

2020 forecast capacity: 5,958 MW

Peak use (2011 forecast): 4,600 MW

Cross-border trade: Exports 9,035 gWh (earns $314 million)

GHG intensity rank: 8th-highest

GHG emissions goal: meet Kyoto targets (6% below 1990 levels by 2012)

Green targets: LEED silver rating for new provincially funded buildings

Do you want to know how much you'll be paying for electricity in 2020? Try the provincial cost calculator.

Like Quebec and B.C., Manitoba is blessed with ample hydro power, enough to generate nearly all its electricity. But while every other jurisdiction in the country scrambles to build more power plants, Manitoba is biding its time. The Prairie province has enough to meet its needs until 2022, according to a recent Manitoba Hydro analysis, and consequently has the most modest short-term power plans of any province. A 60-turbine wind farm will come online this year, and a 200-MW hydro plant next year. And after that, the province can twiddle its thumbs, plucking away at a couple hydro projects totalling 2,100 MW that should be ready by the next decade.

All that excess electricity means megabucks for provincial coffers. A new transmission line planned for 2019 will only improve export prospects, allowing Manitoba to sell 50 per cent more power — for a total cross-border capacity of 3,200 MW — to the U.S.