Construction begins on Dundonald solar farm in Saskatoon

Saskatoon is lighting up its power grid with its first utility-scale solar facility.

Construction has started on the 2.8-megawatt solar project, located on about 14 acres of land between the CN railway tracks and the Circle Drive S. freeway, east of Dundonald Avenue and south of 11th Street West.

Jose Cheruvallath, the city's metering and sustainable electricity manager, said the site is ideal for the $3.3-million project.

"One of the more prominent features of the site is the fact that it couldn't be used for anything else," Cheruvallath said. "It's currently vacant and it has excellent south exposure."

The solar farm, which should be up and running by the end of the year, is expected to reduce electricity emissions by almost 20,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide over its 30-year lifetime.

The narrow strip of land is to have 5,000 solar panels and produce enough generation capacity to power more than 400 homes.

"We're estimating this [solar farm] to save about $300,000 each year over the life of 30 years," he said.

"That would help pay for the project and help replenish any asset management considerations down the road."

Cheruvallath said this is the second major renewable project for the city, the first being the Landfill Gas Collection & Power Generation System, which began operation in 2014 .

"We're going to learn from every part [of the project], including its design, its construction and its operating and maintenance," he said. "Hopefully we can take that knowledge and apply it at other sites."

The solar panels and electrical components will be installed ince gates, fencing and security are in place.

The site will also feature native grasses and flowers, with vines planted along the existing northwest chain-link fence.

The city says construction will not impact traffic flow, though adjacent communities will get temporary noise and vibration during construction.

The project is funded in part by the provincial and federal governments.