The Tsilhqot’in Nation held a grand opening of its solar farm this past Friday.
Located 80 kilometers west of Williams Lake on two hectares of the Riverwest Sawmill brownfield, the solar farm consists of 3,456 solar modules that will convert the sun’s rays into electricity which will then be sent to the BC Hydro grid.
“Energy and electricity have been lacking out in the territory for a long time, despite one of the longest stretches of hydro in Canada,” said Tsilhqot’in National Government (TNG) Tribal Chair Chief Joe Alphonse. “So we welcome the opportunity for business and to improve the well-being of our people.”
Full operation is expected to begin shortly with the solar farm generating about 1,500 megawatt-hours of electricity per year during its 25-year expected lifetime.
It’s the largest of its kind in British Columbia and is a hundred percent developed, built, owned and operated by the Tsilhqot’in Nation.
“There were challenging hurdles to get this project to the point of completion, but I am happy to see that the Solar Farm is ready to offer electricity to the region and provide revenue for the Tsilhqot’in Nation,” Chief Russell Myers Ross said.