Craig Lake Wind

The Craig Lake Wind project is proposed as an estimated 246 MW (megawatt) / 815 GWh (gigawatt hours) wind power project in East Central Alberta, Canada. ATCO EnPower and its affiliate, ATCO Renewables Ltd. (ATCO), acquired the lease agreements for the project lands from Suncor Energy Inc. in January 2023. We are continuing with the project planning and development.

The Project

The project is located approximately 70 km north of the town of Hanna, Alberta and approximately 6.3 km east of the town of Castor in the County of Paintearth No. 18, on privately owned land used for agricultural activities and oil and gas production.

ATCO holds lease options on approximately 7,952 hectares (ha) (124 quarter sections) that the project will be developed on, however, the construction and operating areas will occupy a much smaller area within the project area once the footprint and land agreements are finalized. The project construction footprint will be approximately 186.4 ha and the project operation footprint will be 98.4 ha.

The project will consist of up to 43 wind turbines, a collector system, substation, access roads, and a transmission line interconnection. ATCO is currently in the process of choosing a wind turbine manufacturer and model.

Community Benefits

The project is planned with a generating capacity of 246 MW of energy, producing enough power annually to power 125,000 homes and offset 410,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide¹. The project will result in many economic benefits for the County of Paintearth, local businesses, and host landowners. 200 to 300 temporary jobs are expected to be created during the construction phase, with additional long-term jobs expected for the operation and maintenance of the facility. During operations, the project is expected to generate an average of approximately $5-million per year during the project life in tax revenue to the County of Paintearth. In addition, host landowners with project infrastructure on their land will receive lease payments.

¹ Based on a 2026 Electricity Grid Displacement Factor of 0.4303 tCO2e/MWh (EDF Associates 2023) and 7,200 MWh annually consumed per household (ATCO 2023).

* Anticipated dates are subject to change 

ATCO is asking for your feedback, questions, concerns, and other information that will help inform the layout of the project. ATCO will be including the revised layout in the AUC Rule 007 application for approval to construct, own and operate the project. ATCO plans to submit the AUC Rule 007 application in Q3 2024. Depending on regulatory approvals, construction is planned to start in Q2 2026 and be complete with the project commissioned and the start of operations in Q2 2027.

Project Events

ATCO held a Project Information Session on April 25, 2024, where details about the project were presented, and the development team responded to questions asked.

• Information Session Presentation
• What We Heard Summary

Contact Us

Your comments and feedback are important to us. Please contact us:

Toll-free at: 1-866-344-0178
Email: ATCORenewables@ATCO.com

Landowner inquiries:
Julia Chavez, Surface Land Lead
Phone: 403-969-8580

General project information, questions, or concerns:
James Guthrie, Manager, Regulatory & Environment
Phone: 403-804-4062

For all sales and offtake inquiries:
Mike Waller, Senior Director, Sales and Marketing
Phone: 587-894-3991

Project Documents

• Project Specific Information Package - March 2024
• Frequently Asked Questions and Supplemental Information
• Preliminary Site Layout Map
• AUC Public Involvement Brochure
• Approach to Wind and Solar Land Rights