Calgary is a step closer to getting a new “energy park” in the southeast industrial area.
“It will be North America’s largest carbon-negative renewable natural gas and ethanol project. It is a renewable biofuels facility,” Mayor Jyoti Gondek told reporters Tuesday.
“It is part of the clean energy solution that we continue to advocate for as a council.”
Owned and operated by a subsidiary of Green Impact Partners and located near the corner of Stoney Trail and Peigan Trail, the facility will take wheat whose quality doesn’t meet food consumption standards and turn it into renewable biofuels – ethanol and renewable natural gas.
Between 11 and 13 per cent of Canada’s wheat does not meet food safety standards. In December, Statistics Canada reported the 33.8 million tonnes of wheat produced last year was the third-highest on record, “largely attributable to higher production in the Prairies.”
A pair of co-generators on the energy park’s site is projected to create 30 MW and produce byproducts that would be turned into animal feed.
Construction of the facility will generate around 800 jobs over two years and will maintain around 50 jobs for operation. It’s also projected to create $150 million in annual revenue for wheat producers.
On Tuesday, Calgary city council unanimously approved the changes in land use to the plot in the Starfield East industrial area. The development permit is expected to be submitted this quarter.
The provincial approval is still in the works.
Construction is expected to begin next year, barring any delays.
“It is a very big win for Calgary and for the region,” Gondek said.
A growth area
Calgary city council and Rocky View County’s council are hoping to invite more industrial growth to the nearby area following a “step forward in building a collaborative relationship.”
On Monday, Calgary and Rocky View County met to look at the best ways to develop an industrial growth corridor in the city’s southeast.
Examples of growth they’re hoping to attract include logistics centres, shipping hubs, manufacturing and film production.
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Gondek said the collaborative approach is a departure from the previous councils’ stances.
“Typically, we have had geopolitical battles about ‘Whose land is it?’ and ‘What should the boundaries look like?’” Calgary’s mayor said. “We’ve now got two councils that are very interested in thinking about how we might structure some sort of a business deal or arrangement where there’s equity in sharing the cost and the benefit of something that benefits both municipalities.”
Rocky View County Mayor Crystal Kissel echoed the sentiment of developing inter-municipal relationships to benefit citizens in both jurisdictions.
“Rocky View County recognizes that by working collaboratively with our partners at the City of Calgary, we can advance significant economic opportunities across municipal boundaries,” Kissel said in a statement. “I believe that this co-operative approach will benefit residents and businesses across the region.”
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