SaskPower’s Great Plains Power Station, a 370-MW combined cycle gas turbine facility, has entered commercial operation, marking a significant milestone in the Canadian power company’s long-term strategy to modernize and expand its provincial electrical system. The plant, located at the Moose Jaw Industrial Park, is a key project in SaskPower’s efforts to support the province’s rapidly growing industrial sector, which includes agriculture, mining, and data integration.
The Great Plains Power Station is not just a new addition to SaskPower’s generation capacity; it’s a model for future natural gas-fired power projects. Unlike the large-scale plants common in the U.S., the Saskatchewan grid system and power needs do not support such high-capacity single-source loads. Instead, the Great Plains project demonstrates a more strategic generation distribution approach with plant sizes in the range of 300 to 370 MW, which align with the capacity limits and distribution needs of the regional grid.
“This configuration has proven to be effective and we believe it is now considered the model for future development,” said Darcy Wagner, managing director for Canada with Burns & McDonnell, the company that led the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) for the project. The plant’s design and capacity are intended to integrate seamlessly with other forms of power generation, including simple cycles, renewables, reciprocating engines, and baseload nuclear power, allowing for a more balanced and resilient energy mix.
The project has also made significant contributions to the local economy. The principals on the Great Plains project worked with more than 300 Saskatchewan-based companies, including fabricated steel, piping, tanks, and general construction material suppliers. The project recognized contract awards that far exceeded the targets established at the onset of the project for local and Indigenous-based companies ($334 million to local companies, $52 million to Indigenous companies). Burns & McDonnell said there were more than 600 workers onsite during peak construction, including many from Saskatchewan businesses and skilled tradespeople, both unionized and non-unionized.
The construction of the project faced numerous challenges, many of which were linked to the timing of the project being contracted just before the COVID-19 pandemic. As the pandemic evolved, it introduced economic, labor, and delivery schedule challenges. Impacts of COVID-19 in foreign countries, where many of the project’s specialized parts and pieces of equipment were sourced, challenged schedules. Additionally, strict adherence to continuously updated COVID-19 protocols restricted activity on the construction site, creating logistical complications.
“Even as restrictions were lifted, the labor market never fully rebounded, with estimates upwards of 10% for permanent departures in the workforce in Saskatchewan. This created challenges in labor attraction, requiring the team to maintain a high level of transparency with SaskPower and work closely with them to develop appropriate action plans,” said Jerry Gander, EPC project manager for Burns & McDonnell.
Despite these obstacles, the team was able to draw on its familiarity with subcontractors and prior experience working in Saskatchewan to help manage and mitigate many of the challenges. The project also provided lessons in strategic engineering solutions. Weather was another challenge, particularly due to the cold weather construction conditions common in Canada. To mitigate this, one of the first steps in construction was building a weather-tight structure to create a controlled environment for indoor work.
The engineering and design concept for Great Plains Power Station was to leverage continuous improvement opportunities that were realized through the design, construction, startup, and operation of Chinook Power Station. Working collaboratively with SaskPower, Burns & McDonnell, to the extent possible, replicated the technology (gas and steam turbines plus key balance of plant, or BOP, equipment) from Chinook. This streamlined the layout and engineering efforts and provided consistent equipment, allowing SaskPower to aggregate spare parts and staff training.
The Great Plains Power Station is a testament to SaskPower’s commitment to providing reliable and affordable power to the province of Saskatchewan as it supports local and regional growth. The plant’s role in helping meet SaskPower’s goals, and its importance to the whole of Saskatchewan, is among the reasons the facility is receiving a POWER Top Plant Award for natural gas–fired generation. The project’s success could shape the development of future power projects in the sector, emphasizing the importance of strategic generation distribution, local economic contributions, and overcoming challenges through innovative engineering solutions.