Canada has opened a 465-megawatt solar farm on reclaimed Alberta oil sands mining land.
The Alberta Prairie Solar Farm covers 2,000 hectares of former mining terrain with bifacial silicon panels on single-axis tracking systems. Native prairie grass species established beneath the panel arrays complete environmental restoration obligations of the former oil sands operator while controlling wind erosion across the previously degraded surface. Snow-reflective bifacial rear surfaces boost winter energy production by 15 percent, partially compensating for Alberta's shorter winter daylight at 57 degrees north latitude.
The bifacial tracking system achieves 28 percent capacity factor despite Alberta's northern latitude because Canada's clear continental atmosphere provides high direct normal irradiance and cold temperatures improve photovoltaic efficiency by 12 percent compared to equivalent panels in hot desert conditions.
The farm produces 1,140 gigawatt-hours annually, powering 110,000 Alberta homes while completing land restoration previously projected to cost 1.2 billion Canadian dollars using conventional remediation alone. Alberta has identified 85,000 additional hectares of reclaimed oil sands land eligible for solar development representing 20 gigawatts of clean energy potential.
Source: Capital Power Corporation Canada, Alberta Utilities Commission, Energy Policy Journal, 2025
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