Yukon Energy says it’s still committed to renewable energy — but says that in the short term, the territory needs more capacity to burn fossil fuels.

“Without a stable electrical system today, we cannot add more renewables in the future,” said Chris Milner, the company’s president and CEO.

The public utility this week released its new five-year plan to meet the territory’s growing demand for energy. That plan calls for, among other infrastructure upgrades, two new thermal plants — which would burn LNG or diesel — to be built near Whitehorse over the next few years. Those plants would provide up to 45 megawatts in new generating capacity.

Right now, most of Yukon’s energy is renewable and produced at the utility’s Whitehorse, Mayo and Aishihik hydro dams. Yukon Energy also rents diesel generators to use mainly as a backup or supplementary source of power when demand is high in the winter months. The utility has also relied more than usual on those diesel generators this past winter while the damaged Aishihik facility has been offline for repairs.

The territory’s grid has also become increasingly strained in recent years as the territory’s population, and demand for power, steadily grows. The company says that’s expected to continue for the foreseeable future and so it’s time to take action now to ensure a reliable supply of energy with backup capacity.

The control structure at Mayo Lake is part of Yukon Energy’s Mayo dam complex. (Yukon Energy)

Yukon Energy’s plans would see one new thermal power centre built next year somewhere in “south Whitehorse,” and another built in 2027-28 in “north Whitehorse.” The total cost is expected to be more than $100 million.

Milner said around 75 per cent of the territory’s power is used in the Whitehorse area, so that’s why the new plants will be built near the city.

He described the five-year plan as “chapter one” of the utility’s longer-term plans, which include more renewable energy such as wind and solar.

“Stabilizing the grid means having enough power every second of every day of every month, throughout the year,” Milner said.

“This plan that we needed to advance now really needs to take care of our needs today and over the short term — so that we can continue to drive forward with these larger, renewable energy plans.”

Minister ‘gaslighting’ about support for plan, opposition says

Six years ago, the company was also proposing to build a new 20-megawatt thermal power plant in Whitehorse, but the plan was ultimately scrapped following public consultations and a subsequent report that described how many Yukoners weren’t so hot on the idea, and preferred Yukon Energy to pursue renewable energy options such as biomass, geothermal, solar and wind power.

At the time, Premier Ranj Pillai — then the territory’s energy minister — trumpeted the decision as “good news for Yukoners.”

“Yukoners have expressed concerns about this project at a time when we need to be focused on the future and how to meet our energy needs in the face of climate change emergency,” Pillai said at the time.

Now, the territory’s new energy minister, John Streicker, is throwing his support behind the utility’s plans, saying there’s not much choice, at least in the short term.

“I’ve always known that we need to have thermal backup,” Streicker told reporters on Wednesday.

“Why diesels first? Because all of the growth that’s been happening. So it’s time.”

‘I’ve always known that we need to have thermal backup,’ said Energy Minister John Streicker this week. (Jackie Hong/CBC)

As for how Yukon Energy’s plans will be paid for, Streicker said “those conversations haven’t happened yet.”

Opposition parties blasted the government for its seeming about-face when it comes to relying on fossil fuels.

Yukon Party Leader Currie Dixon called it an “admission that the past nine years of Liberal government and the energy strategy that they have pursued to this date have been an abject failure.”

Dixon said he’s in favour of the plan “because it’s necessary.” However, he also accused the government of “gaslighting” Yukoners about where it has stood in the past.

“It’s just stunning to see now that they’re going to turn around and not only invest $100 million in fossil fuels, but try to say that this was their plan all along,” Dixon said.

“It’s gaslighting by the minister to try to suggest that he’d always wanted this to happen, that he always wanted to invest in thermal resources. That’s simply not true.”

Yukon Party Leader Currie Dixon said he’s in favour of Yukon Energy’s plan ‘because it’s necessary.’ (Jackie Hong/CBC)

NDP MLA Lane Tredger professed shock that the utility’s five-year plan “stops talking about renewables, for now.”

“The Yukon government standing behind this plan means they’ve entirely abandoned their climate change goals around renewable energy, and that’s pretty shocking,” Tredger said.

“If we’re not starting [renewable energy] projects for next another five years, we’re not going to be finishing them for another 10 or 15 years. We need to be doing that now. And that is really very noticeably absent from the plan.”

Yukon Energy’s CEO points to the utility’s longer-term plans which do include more emphasis on developing renewable energy projects.

“The Yukon is a small place. It’s going to take an all-Yukon approach to lift those projects, not just a utility approach. So coming together and really investing in future renewables is what we need to do, and that’s what this [five-year] plan sets the stage for,” Milner said.

“The needs of today are about having enough power in the winter.”