BHE Canada, a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, has filed a facility application with the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC) for the construction and grid connection of the 117.6 MW Rattlesnake Ridge Wind project.
The company filed the application for the proposed project through its BHE Canada Rattlesnake GP Inc. subsidiary. Earlier this month, BHE Canada secured a power purchase agreement with a large Canadian corporate partner for the majority of the project’s energy output.
“Following years of consultation with the community and detailed engineering for the wind farm, we’re excited to submit these applications to the Alberta Utilities Commission for review,” comments William Christensen, vice president of corporate development at BHE Canada. “Rattlesnake Ridge Wind is an outstanding project that brings valuable investment to southeast Alberta and connects a new renewable energy resource to Alberta’s grid without the need for government subsidies, while also providing revenue to participating landowners.”
The C$200 million project will include 28 wind turbines on approximately 13,000 acres of land southwest of Medicine Hat, Alberta. The 4.2 MW turbines will provide approximately 475 GWh of energy per year, enough to power the equivalent of 79,000 homes.
According to the developer, the transmission connection will have minimal impact on land, requiring less than 150 meters of a new 138 kV line and one new structure along an existing 138 kV line. A new telecommunications tower will also be constructed within BHE Canada’s Rattlesnake Ridge Wind substation. BHE Canada will pay for the full cost of the wind farm and the associated transmission connection.
Pending AUC approval of the applications, construction of the wind farm could begin in the fourth quarter of 2020, with completion expected by December 2021.
