Flying Dust First Nation signed a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for the Kopahawakenum Flare to Power Facility. (FDFN)

By meadowlakeNOW Staff

Powering up

Flying Dust First Nation signs significant power agreement

Nov 23, 2021 | 1:15 PM

A significant commitment to powering homes is coming to Flying Dust First Nation (FDFN).

On Tuesday morning, SaskPower and Genalta Power joined FDFN in announcing a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for the Kopahawakenum Flare to Power Facility (KFP Facility). The 15-megawatt flare gas-to-power facility, which is expected to open in 2023 near Coleville, is an anticipated capital investment of $30 million.

In a joint media release from all parties, Energy and Resources Minister Bronwyn Eyre said the new project, which will become the largest flare gas-to-power facility operation in the province will create around 50 jobs during construction and 20 into operation. It is also designed to generate power for approximately 9,000 Saskatchewan Homes and reduce emissions, as part of the province’s Methane Action Plan to reduce between 4-4.5 million tonnes of CO2e annually by 2025.

“As a methane capture and commercialization project, it is another example of Saskatchewan’s world-class innovation and another step to achieving our goals under the provincial Methane Action Plan,” Eyre said.

The facility is projected as the largest of its kind in Saskatchewan (Government of Saskatchewan)

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The KFP Facility will require about four million cubic feet of gas per day, resulting in the reduction of approximately 100,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) annually. Don Morgan, Minister Responsible for SaskPower, called the venture a win-win.

“This project will use flare gas that would otherwise have been emitted into the atmosphere to create low-carbon baseload electricity,” Morgan said. “The oil and gas operation can generate revenue and reduce its exposure to the carbon tax, while contributing to the Province of Saskatchewan and SaskPower’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

FDFN Chief Jeremy Norman said the First Nation is proud to participate in this business opportunity and thanked their partners for developing the project. Kopahawakenum is the Cree name for “kicking up the dust.”

“This project will provide much needed own source revenue to our community and membership for years to come,” Norman said. “It has always been a goal of the FDFN to seek and create opportunities and be part of the Saskatchewan Growth Plan.”

The PPA was developed through an ongoing partnership between SaskPower and the First Nations Power Authority (FNPA), a not-for-profit organization that works to include Indigenous people in Saskatchewan’s power sector and achieve sustainable economic development and community benefits. SaskPower and the FNPA have signed an agreement to source 20 MW of electricity from power generation projects that use methane from oil production as the fuel source and are led by First Nations communities and businesses.

“This initial step of 15 MW towards full fulfillment of the 20 MW of flare gas power generation through the First Nations Opportunity Agreement signed between FNPA and SaskPower is indeed a major milestone,” First Nations Power Authority President and CEO Guy Lonechild said.

The project is conditionally approved under the province’s Oil and Gas Processing Investment Incentive (OGPII) and the Saskatchewan Petroleum Innovation Incentive (SPII). Under both programs, government investment follows up-front private investment.

For more information, visit saskpower.com/projects.

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