Prince Edward Island: Clean electricity snapshot
2022-2024
PEI has taken strides by building renewable energy projects including solar farms and wind turbines. For many years now, PEI has been importing around 68% of its electricity from New Brunswick with 2 submarine transmission cables. Now leading in wind power generation, PEI continues to consider the next generation of renewable electricity developments, which will have economic and environmental benefits for Islanders.
Powering Canada's Future is the Government of Canada's strategy for clean electricity. It combines historic investments and balanced, fair regulations to lay out the path forward to build grids that will provide power that is reliable, affordable and clean and serve as the backbone of our economy.
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Federal investments
As of November 2024, the Smart Renewables and Electrification Pathways Program (SREPs) has approved funding of over $21.7 million for three projects in Prince Edward Island.
- Around $1.8 million SREP funding towards Na'ku'set Park Capacity Building Project with Maritime Electric Company, Limited.
- $874,000 SREP funding towards Maritime Electric Company, Limited with Abegweit First Nation.
In October 2024, the Government of Canada announced its support for clean technology innovation and energy in First Nations communities in Atlantic Canada.
Emissions and electricity generation
According to the National Inventory Report, in 2022, over 99% of Prince Edward Island's electricity was generated from renewable resources including hydro, wind, and solar. Less than 1% was generated from other fuel, such as diesel.
Long description
| Electricity source | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Coal | 0.00% |
| Natural gas | 0.00% |
| Other fuels | <1% |
| Nuclear | 0.00% |
| Hydro | 0.00% |
| Wind & Solar | 99.78% |
| Total TWh | 0.66 |
Note: Totals may not add up due to rounding
*Renewables: Includes electricity generation by wind, tidal and solar.
*Other fuels: Includes GHG emissions from the combustion of refined petroleum products (light fuel oil, heavy fuel oil, and diesel), petroleum coke, still gas and other fuels not easily categorized.
Wind power
The West Cape Wind Farm is PEI's largest wind farm, producing a total of 99 megawatts (MW) of electricity and powering around 25,000 homes annually.
The East Point Wind Farm has 10 turbines with a capacity of 3 MW each that can generate around 90 gigawatt (GW) hours annually and is capable of powering 11,000 homes per year. The wind farm can also prevent 70,000 tonnes of pollution from entering the atmosphere every year, which is equivalent to removing 15,000 cars off the road.
Solar power
In Summerside PEI, the 21 MW Sunbank solar farm and storage facility can supply power to over 2,500 homes annually and reduce over 8,120 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, over 1,700 cars emissions.
Ameresco developed the Slemon Park Microgrid co-located with a 10 MW solar facility and energy storage, which is projected to offset approximately 4,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent per year over its useful life.
Economic opportunities
In addition to cleaner air and lower greenhouse gas emissions, a clean electricity grid can stimulate investment in innovation, provide economic opportunities, and create good jobs.
New jobs
Electrification and the transition to cleaner forms of electricity generation is expected to create good jobs across Canada. For instance, independent experts from Clean Energy Canada (PDF) forecast that the Atlantic provinces will see thousands of clean energy jobs added in the Atlantic region between 2025 and 2050.
The Sunbank Solar Farm brought in 210 full-time jobs to Summerside, a town of around 16,000. Workers can use their knowledge and experience for other clean energy projects in PEI and abroad.
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