Canadian authority approves 75 MW pumped hydro storage project in Alberta

Turning Point Generation has announced the approval by the Alberta Utilities Commission of the Canyon Creek Pumped Hydro Energy Storage Project making it the first large-scale energy storage project approved in Alberta.

The 75 MW Canyon Creek project, capable of supplying power for up to 37 hours at full output, is located near Hinton, Alberta and utilizes existing site infrastructure from a decommissioned open pit coal mine. Turning Point first started studies on site in early 2016.

The project's principal elements are an upper storage pond, a receiving pond located 500 metres lower, a large-diameter pipe (a "penstock") connecting the two ponds and a powerhouse and pump station at the lowest end of the penstock that house both turbine-generators and high-volume pumps.

When water is released into the penstock from the upper pond to the lower, electricity is generated. The storage capacity of the upper pond is subsequently restored by reversing the flow and pumping water from the lower pond back to the upper.  This closed-loop, off-stream design significantly reduces any potential adverse environmental impacts to Alberta's natural river courses.

Turning Point Generation is a subsidiary of WindRiver Power Corporation.  WindRiver is engaged in the development, ownership and operation of renewable energy projects in Western Canada and internationally, with a focus on run-of-river hydro, wind generation and now, through Turning Point, pumped hydro energy storage.