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44-577: In 1955 Joseph Pettick left the firm Portnall and Stock and formed his own practice. Pettick's first building was an office located at 2146 Albert Street, built for a steel pipe company. At the sod-turning ceremony Pettick met David Cass-Beggs, the head of the Saskatchewan Power Corporation . During their conversation Cass-Beggs mentioned that the company was thinking of constructing a new office to consolidate their staff. After meeting Cass-Beggs on several occasions at art events in

88-454: A carbon price , due to their dispatchable generation and because shale gas and liquefied natural gas prices have fallen since they were built. Even in places with a carbon price, such as the EU, existing gas-fired power stations remain economically viable, partly due to increasing restrictions on coal-fired power because of its pollution. Even when replacing coal power, the decision to build

132-822: A heat recovery steam generator and a steam turbine which use the Rankine cycle . The most common configuration is two gas-turbines supporting one steam turbine. They are slightly more expensive than simple cycle plants but can achieve efficiencies up to 55% and dispatch times of around half an hour. Reciprocating internal combustion engines tend to be under 20 MW, thus much smaller than other types of natural gas-fired electricity generator, and are typically used for emergency power or to balance variable renewable energy such as wind and solar. Relatively efficient gas-fired power stations – such as those based on combined cycle gas turbines – emit about 450 grams (16 oz) of CO 2 per kilowatt-hour of electricity generated. This

176-424: A few dozen hours per year—depending on the electricity demand and the generating capacity of the region. In areas with a shortage of base-load and load following power plant capacity or with low fuel costs, a gas turbine powerplant may regularly operate most hours of the day. A large single-cycle gas turbine typically produces 100 to 400 megawatts of electric power and has 35–40% thermodynamic efficiency . In

220-561: A nationwide carbon tax that made it more-expensive for SaskPower to operate both coal and natural gas plants in comparison to hydro, wind, and solar facilities. The federal coal regulations mentioned above would have meant that Boundary Dam units 4 and 5 would need to close at the end of 2019. However, in 2019 the Moe government was able to negotiate an equivalency agreement with the Trudeau government that allowed Boundary Dam unit 4 to run until

264-457: A new battery storage power station together with solar power or wind power is cheaper in the long-term than building a new gas plant, as the gas plant risks becoming a stranded asset . As of 2019 a few gas-fired power plants are being retired because they are unable to stop and start quickly enough. Despite the falling cost of variable renewable energy most existing gas-fired power plants remain profitable, especially in countries without

308-506: A pioneering effort (although some utilities in the USA had been using such a system on its rural lines). It was at the time one of the largest such systems in the world. One of the last cities in the province added to SaskPower's system was North Portal in 1971 (which had been served up to this point from Montana-Dakota Utilities' distribution system in Portal, ND just across the border). SaskPower

352-423: A province-wide electrical grid. The final step in creating a truly province-wide grid was to electrify the province's vast rural areas. The primary hurdle to rural electrification was the very low customer density in the province – approximately one farm customer per network mile (1.6 km) – and the extremely high cost of a network of the scale required by the vast distances between customers. After much study,

396-412: A province-wide grid. It was also responsible under The Rural Electrification Act (1949) for the electrification of the province's rural areas, bringing electricity to over 66,000 farms between 1949 and 1966. To manage the high costs of electrifying the province's sparsely populated rural areas, SaskPower used a large-scale implementation of a single wire ground return distribution system, claimed to be

440-472: A simple cycle gas-turbine, also known as open-cycle gas-turbine (OCGT) generators, hot gas drives a gas turbine to generate electricity. This type of plant is relatively cheap to build and can start very quickly, but due to its lower efficiency is at most only run for a few hours a day as a peaking power plant . CCGT power plants consist of simple cycle gas-turbines which use the Brayton cycle , followed by

484-425: A total generating capacity of 5,437 megawatts (MW) from 31 generating facilities, including three coal-fired power stations , ten natural gas stations , seven hydroelectric stations , eight wind power facilities and three solar facilities. Of these 31 facilities, 12 of them are operated by Independent Power Producers who sell electricity to SaskPower through a Power Purchase Agreement. The Chinook Power Station

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528-399: Is a thermal power station that burns natural gas to generate electricity . Gas-fired power plants generate almost a quarter of world electricity and are significant sources of greenhouse gas emissions . However, they can provide seasonal, dispatchable energy generation to compensate for variable renewable energy deficits, where hydropower or interconnectors are not available. In

572-438: Is a 350MW combined-cycle natural gas power station near Swift Current that has come online in 2019. The Boundary Dam Power Station is a coal-fired station, the number 3 boiler of which was chosen for renewal as a carbon capture and storage facility . The SaskPower transmission system utilizes lines carrying 230,000 volts, 138,000 volts and 72,000 volts. There are 59 switching stations and 200 distribution stations on

616-478: Is about half that of coal-fired power stations but much more than nuclear power plants and renewable energy . However, the more flexible simple-cycle turbines have a significantly higher emissions intensity, frequently as high as 670 grams (24 oz) of CO 2 per kWh, and some older gas turbines can have emissions intensities comparable with even the most emissions intensive coal power stations. However, full Life-cycle emissions of gas-fired power stations

660-466: Is also exploring additional low- and non-GHG emitting supply options including Saskatchewan hydro, and new technologies like CCS on natural gas and nuclear power from small modular reactors (SMR). The government of Canada’s proposed Clean Electricity Regulations (CER) would require SaskPower to reduce its GHG emissions to net zero by 2035. CER will impact 2,900 MW of baseload and dispatchable generation capacity. It’s expected this would significantly hinder

704-654: Is also on track to achieve net-zero GHG emissions by 2050 or earlier. In 2012, the Harper government introduced regulations to start phasing out coal-fired power plants in Canada. These regulations set an emissions limit for coal-fired generating units of 420 tonnes of CO 2 per GWh. The limit was to be imposed in 2015 on all new coal units, and would also apply to units built before 1975 starting in 2020, and to units built before 1986 starting in 2030, and would also apply to all units once they reach 50 years of age regardless of

748-481: Is increased by methane emissions from gas leaks associated with gas production and distribution pipelines as well as from significant venting of waste CO 2 after amine gas treating if carbon capture and storage is employed. Very few power plants have carbon capture and storage . Gas-fired power plants can be modified to run on hydrogen , and according to General Electric a more economically viable option than CCS would be to use more and more hydrogen in

792-547: Is the principal electric utility in Saskatchewan , Canada. Established in 1929 by the provincial government , it serves more than 550,000 customers and manages nearly $ 13 billion in assets. SaskPower is a major employer in the province with over 3,100 permanent full-time staff located in approximately 70 communities. SaskPower was founded as the Saskatchewan Power Commission in 1929, becoming

836-602: The McNeill HVDC Back-to-back station . In 2022, SaskPower signed an agreement with Southwest Power Pool to increase transmission capacity between Saskatchewan and the United States. The agreement enables the import and export of up to 650 MW of power starting in 2027 . Incorporated under The Power Corporation Act (1949), SaskPower purchased the majority of the province's small, independent municipal electrical utilities and integrated them into

880-542: The 1930s and the labour shortage caused by the Second World War delayed the creation of a provincial power system for nearly two decades. By 1948, the Commission operated 35 generating stations and more than 8,800 km of transmission lines. However, most farm families who had electricity generated it themselves using battery systems charged by wind turbines or gasoline- or diesel-powered generators. Across

924-517: The Corporation adopted a single wire ground return distribution scheme, which lowered the cost of rural electrification significantly. The first year of the program set the goal of connecting 1200 rural customers to the network. The experience gained during the first years led to an increased rate of connections every year, leading to a peak yearly connection rate in 1956 of 7,800 customers. By 1961, 58,000 farms were connected, and by 1966 when

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968-606: The Saskatchewan Power Corporation in 1949 with the passage of The Rural Electrification Act . The abbreviated name SaskPower was officially adopted as a trade name in 1987. Owned by the government through its holding company, the Crown Investments Corporation , SaskPower is governed by a Board of Directors who are accountable to the provincial government Minister Responsible for Saskatchewan Power Corporation. SaskPower has

1012-553: The aforementioned dates. In 2014, SaskPower rebuilt Boundary Dam unit 3 with a CCS system capable of capturing 90% of the CO 2 emissions of the unit, and 100% of the SO 2 emissions. In 2018, the Trudeau government accelerated the coal phase-out by mandating that all coal units must shut down by 2030, regardless of the year they were built. The Trudeau government also implemented

1056-404: The century – from 91,279 to 757,510 within 20 years – had led to a sharp increase in the demand for electricity. Finally, the provincial government had determined that the lack of inexpensive power was hampering the development of industry in the province. While the Commission began purchasing independently owned electrical utilities with the goal of interconnecting them, the economic situation of

1100-440: The city over the next few months, Pettick received a phone call one evening and was told that he had been selected to design the new office for the Saskatchewan Power Corporation. Over the next few years Pettick worked with the company to design and build the new office tower, which finally opened in 1963. The Saskatchewan Power Building is an early example of the turn away from Internationalism towards Post Modernism . In lieu of

1144-637: The corporation’s ability to serve its customers during peak demand periods. In addition to building new generators and interconnections to reduce emissions, SaskPower also implements energy efficiency and demand-side management (DSM) programs to reduce electricity use. Since 2008, SaskPower’s DSM programs have reduced peak demand for electricity in Saskatchewan by 157MW. Print: Online: Gas-fired power plant A gas-fired power plant , sometimes referred to as gas-fired power station , natural gas power plant , or methane gas power plant ,

1188-728: The devices they power—often an electric generator —and the secondary-energy equipment that is used to recover residual energy (largely heat). They range in size from portable mobile plants to large, complex systems weighing more than a hundred tonnes housed in purpose-built buildings. When the gas turbine is used solely for shaft power, its thermal efficiency is about 30%. However, it may be cheaper to buy electricity than to generate it. Therefore, many engines are used in CHP (Combined Heat and Power) configurations that can be small enough to be integrated into portable container configurations. Gas turbines can be particularly efficient when waste heat from

1232-513: The directors of the corporation included: Chief Darcy Bear (Chair), Bryan Leverick (Vice-Chair), Neil Henneberg (Corporate Secretary), Terry Bergan, Amber Biemans, Shawn Grice, Cherilyn Jolly-Nagel, Fred Mathewson, Rob Nicolay, Jeff Richards, Stephanie Yong and the Honourable Vaughn Solomon Schofield. By 2030, SaskPower plans to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by over 50% compared to 2005. The corporation

1276-473: The early 2020s batteries became competitive with gas peaker plants . A gas-fired power plant is a type of fossil fuel power station in which chemical energy stored in natural gas, which is mainly methane , is converted successively into: thermal energy , mechanical energy and, finally, electrical energy . Although they cannot exceed the Carnot cycle limit for conversion of heat energy into useful work,

1320-425: The early 2020s. In March 2018, GE Power achieved a 63.08% gross efficiency for its 7HA turbine. Aeroderivative gas turbines can also be used in combined cycles, leading to a higher efficiency, but it will not be as high as a specifically designed industrial gas turbine. They can also be run in a cogeneration configuration: the exhaust is used for space or water heating, or drives an absorption chiller for cooling

1364-497: The end of 2021 and Boundary Dam unit 5 until the end of 2024 due to SaskPower's investments into CCS technology on unit 3. To fill the gap in firm baseload capacity created by the retirement of conventional coal, SaskPower is relying on the new natural gas and import contracts. Additional supply options that are currently available include wind and solar, and at a smaller scale biomass, flare gas, and distributed generation options like residential solar from net metering. The corporation

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1408-402: The excess heat, ie the difference between the chemical energy used up and the useful work generated, may be used in cogeneration plants to heat buildings, to produce hot water, or to heat materials on an industrial scale. Industrial gas turbines differ from aeronautical designs in that the frames, bearings, and blading are of heavier construction. They are also much more closely integrated with

1452-569: The exclusive right and the exclusive obligation to supply electricity in the province, except in the city of Swift Current and most of the city of Saskatoon . The Swift Current Department of Light and Power provides electrical services within the municipal boundary of Swift Current. Saskatoon Light & Power provides service to the customers within the 1958 boundaries of Saskatoon while SaskPower has responsibility for areas annexed after 1958. SaskPower serves more than 550,000 customers through more than 160,000 kilometres of power lines throughout

1496-448: The gas turbine fuel. Hydrogen can at first be created from natural gas through steam reforming , or by heating to precipitate carbon, as a step towards a hydrogen economy , thus eventually reducing carbon emissions. However others think low-carbon hydrogen (such as natural hydrogen ) should be used for things which are harder to decarbonize , such as making fertilizer , so there may not be enough for electricity generation. Sometimes

1540-435: The inlet air and increase the power output, technology known as turbine inlet air cooling . Another significant advantage is their ability to be turned on and off within minutes, supplying power during peak, or unscheduled, demand. Since single cycle (gas turbine only) power plants are less efficient than combined cycle plants, they are usually used as peaking power plants , which operate anywhere from several hours per day to

1584-579: The next two decades by architects such as Douglas Cardinal and Peter Hemingway . Pettick chose to colour the building a light tan, similar to that of a prairie field. From above, the curvature of the building can also be seen as symbolic of wind-blown wheat. The Saskatchewan Power Building was the topic of an episode of the two-season DVD series Edifice and Us (2009). 50°26′48″N 104°36′36″W  /  50.4468°N 104.6101°W  / 50.4468; -104.6101 SaskPower Saskatchewan Power Corporation , operating as SaskPower ,

1628-500: The program concluded, the Corporation had provided power to a total of 66,000 rural customers. In addition, hundreds of schools, churches and community halls received electrical service during this period. SaskPower is governed by a board of directors that is responsible to the Minister Responsible for Saskatchewan Power Corporation. The board gets appointed by the lieutenant governor of Saskatchewan. In February 2024,

1672-431: The province and covers a service territory that includes Saskatchewan's geographic area of approximately 652,000 km (252,000 sq mi). This low customer density means that while most North American electrical utilities supply an average of 12 customers per circuit kilometre, SaskPower supplies about three. In fiscal year 2022-23, SaskPower sold 23,818 GWh of electricity for $ 2,844 million (CAD). SaskPower has

1716-507: The province, only 1,500 farms were connected to the electrical grid, most of them because of their proximity to the lines that linked cities and larger towns. In 1949, by an Act of the Provincial Legislature, the Commission became the Saskatchewan Power Corporation. The first task of the new Corporation was to purchase what remained of the province's small, independent electrical utilities and to begin integrating them into

1760-482: The right angles and rectilinear forms of the former style, Pettick employed flowing curvature and a less formal order. One of the greatest influences on Pettick's design was Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer , and specifically Niemeyer's Edifício Copan in São Paulo . The Saskatchewan Power Building is also one of the first examples of a new Canadian prairie style of architecture, which would be further developed over

1804-399: The transmission system. SaskPower has four interconnections to Manitoba , one interconnection to North Dakota , and one interconnection to Alberta . Manitoba and North Dakota are on the same grid frequency as Saskatchewan, which means interconnections can be made directly using a normal AC transmission line. Alberta is part of WECC , so the interconnection relies on an AC/DC-AC link via

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1848-480: The turbine is recovered by a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) to power a conventional steam turbine in a combined cycle configuration. The 605 MW General Electric 9HA achieved a 62.22% efficiency rate with temperatures as high as 1,540 °C (2,800 °F). For 2018, GE offers its 826 MW HA at over 64% efficiency in combined cycle due to advances in additive manufacturing and combustion breakthroughs, up from 63.7% in 2017 orders and on track to achieve 65% by

1892-496: Was founded by an Act of the provincial legislature as the Saskatchewan Power Commission in 1929. The purpose of the Commission was to research how best to create a provincial power system which would provide the province's residents with safe, reliable electric service. A provincial power system was desirable for many reasons. In the early days of electricity in the province of Saskatchewan, electricity

1936-405: Was largely unavailable outside of larger centres. Most electrical utilities were owned either privately or by municipalities, and none of them were interconnected. Because each utility operated independently, rates often varied significantly between communities – anywhere from 4 to 45 cents per kilowatt hour in the mid-1920s. The rapid growth in the province's population in the first decades of

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