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LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON
Fort Simpson could become the site of the largest solar panel installation in the territory.

The solar panel installation planned for Fort Simpson may look like a larger version of the five-kilowatt installation in Sachs Harbour. The Sachs Harbour project was funded by alternative energy money from the territorial government. - photo courtesy of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources

The Northwest Territories Power Corporation plans to have an up-to-100-kilowatt solar power system built at the Fort Simpson airport.

Funding for the project has been allocated from the Energy Priorities Framework the territorial government created at the beginning of its term. Money from the $60-million framework is earmarked, in part, for renewable and alternative energy projects.

Completion of the solar project will depend on a number of factors.

The corporation put the design and construction of the facility out for a public request for proposals. The proposal period closed on Sept. 13.

Submissions will be evaluated based on cost and the experience of the people or companies, said Myra Berrub, the co-ordinator of business and energy development

with the corporation.

The corporation has an estimated budget of between $600,000 and $800,000 for the project. Because the funding for the project was allotted for this fiscal year, the corporation is aiming to complete the solar installation by March.

The winter timeframe will make construction challenging but it is doable, said Berrub.

Fort Simpson top candidate

Fort Simpson was chosen as the site for the project based on a number of factors.

The corporation looked for communities accessible by road and with space for the more than 15,000-square-foot structure; Fort Simpson was one of the top communities examined, said Berrub.

"The nice thing about Fort Simpson is it's the largest diesel community," she said.

Any energy the solar panel installation creates will displace its equivalent in diesel-generated power.

The corporation has been in discussions with the Department of Transportation, which has been very supportive of the project, to use an already cleared area at the airport, said Berrub.

"It will look really great from the air when people are flying into the community," she said.

The design of the installation will depend upon the successful proposal. The solar panels could be mounted on poles and there are options for using panels that track the sun throughout the day.

Touted as a demonstration project, it will allow the corporation to learn more about how solar panels will work in the North. Berrub said there are questions about the amount of power that will be generated, especially in the winter. She said snow build-up might be an issue and although cool temperatures will increase the panels' efficiency, fewer hours of daylight are available for energy collection, she said.

The corporation also expects to learn more about how to interconnect renewable technologies to the existing power grid.

"We are really excited," she said.

Even if the installation reaches its peak efficiency of 100 kilowatts in the summer – enough to power approximately 20 houses – village residents won't see a decrease in their power bills. The diesel power plant in the village produces a minimum of 700 kilowatts at any given time so the installation won't be displacing a lot of that power, said Berrub.

Fort Simpson's Mayor Sean Whelly said he's pleased the village was chosen for the project.

"To me it's a great project to showcase the alternative energy usage of solar power," he said.

Every step taken brings the territory a bit closer to using environmentally friendly sources of power, he said.

Whelly said he hopes to see local contractors get some of the initial groundwork contracts related to the project.

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