Saskatoon's largest solar farm goes ahead with installation planned for 2022

The City of Saskatoon is expecting to install its largest solar farm ever with the capacity to power 330 homes.
On Monday, the city’s environment committee unanimously voted in favour of moving ahead with the project, which calls for the installation of 5,000 ground-mounted solar panels, to be installed on a 13-acre piece of land between Dundonald Avenue and the on-ramp to Circle Drive South from 11th Street West.
According to the city’s administration report, the design and installation of the solar farm will occur in 2022 with the solar farm becoming fully operational in 2023.
The city said the solar farm will generate enough power each year to power 330 homes in Saskatoon.
The city expects to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 450 tonnes per year, the equivalent to 97 cars.
“This will be the largest continuous solar installation in Saskatoon,” said Trevor Bell, director of Saskatoon Light and Power.
“It’s 2.2 megawatts so it’s a good size.”
The cost of the project is pegged at $4.25 million with $2.5 million funded through the federal and provincial governments, the city said.
The project is estimated to have a simple payback period of seven years taking into account the federal and provincial funding, with annual savings of $300,000 expected over its 30-year life.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories

NEW 'I'm in no way ashamed of my infertility': The challenge for families trying to conceive without coverage
Families that need help conceiving a child are met with financial burdens that should be covered through government health care and insurance, advocates say.
Fatal stabbing of German tourist by suspected radical puts sharp focus on Paris Olympics
A bloodstain by a bridge over the Seine river was the only remaining sign on Sunday of a fatal knife attack 12 hours earlier on a German tourist, allegedly carried out by a young man under watch for suspected Islamic radicalization.
Teen girls are being victimized by deepfake nudes. One family is pushing for more protections
A mother and her 14-year-old daughter are advocating for better protections for victims after AI-generated nude images of the teen and other female classmates were circulated at a high school in New Jersey.
1 person is dead and 11 missing after a landslide and flash floods hit Indonesia's Sumatra island
Rescuers recovered the body of a man buried under tons of mud and rocks from flash floods and a landslide that crashed onto a hilly village on Indonesia's Sumatra island. Officials said Sunday that 11 people are still missing.
Strong earthquake that sparked a tsunami warning leaves 1 dead amid widespread panic in Philippines
A powerful earthquake that shook the southern Philippines killed at least one villager and injured several others as thousands scrambled out of their homes in panic and jammed roads to higher grounds after a tsunami warning was issued, officials said Sunday.
Israel orders more people in crowded southern Gaza to evacuate as heavy bombardment shifts there
Israel's military ordered more areas in and around Gaza's second-largest city of Khan Younis to evacuate on Sunday, followed by heavy bombardment, as it shifted its offensive to the southern half of the territory where it asserts that leaders of the Hamas militant group are hiding.
Naloxone: What to know about the opioid overdose-reversing drug, free across Canada
Health Canada has called the opioid crisis one of the most serious public health threats in recent history, and an addictions specialist says everyone can play a part in helping reduce the death toll. All it takes is access to naloxone, a life-saving medication that temporarily reverses an opioid overdose.
'My door is always open': heritage minister insists feds working hard 'to bring Meta back to the table' on C-18
Canada's heritage minister insists the federal government is still working to get Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta back to the bargaining table to negotiate a deal to compensate Canadian news organizations as part of the regulatory process for the controversial Online News Act.
Bonnie Crombie wins Ontario Liberal leadership after 3 rounds of voting
Ontario Liberals have selected Bonnie Crombie, a three-term big city mayor and former MP who boasts that she gets under the skin of Premier Doug Ford, as their next leader to go head to head with the premier in the next provincial election.