Undoing renewables obstacles should be part of energy MOU talks: Pembina

CALGARY – Removing obstacles to renewable energy development must factor into talks the Alberta and federal governments are having around electricity emissions policy, clean energy think tank Pembina Institute says in a new report.   

The two governments signed a sweeping energy accord late last year that includes the suspension of federal clean electricity regulations, pending an agreement on equivalent provincial rules by April 1. 

Alberta’s plan to have a net-zero grid by 2050 seems to rely too heavily on technologies that take a lot of money, time and risk tolerance to build, such as carbon capture and storage and small modular nuclear reactors, said senior analyst Will Noel. 

“I think there’s a real large risk that we’re going to get to mid-2030s and be in the same place we are now or potentially even worse off,” he said. 

Focusing on 2050 as the end-goal and not on the emissions reductions that can be achieved in the interim would be a mistake, he added. He likened it to a boat taking on water and, instead of trying to bail it out now, hoping that a light on the horizon might be a rescue vessel.    

“Focusing on these quick wins, these no-regret solutions … that’s really what we need to do to have this all be successful.”

Noel argues that solar and wind power would deliver quicker, cheaper and more certain results, but Alberta has been spooking away investment in those technologies with an “onslaught” of policy changes targeting the renewables sector.   

A seven-month moratorium on new renewable project approvals ended in early 2024, after which the province introduced a bevy of rules affecting the sector. Those include an “agriculture first” approach to land use, upfront payments for reclamation costs and a 35-kilometre buffer zone around wind projects so as not to impede “pristine viewscapes.” 

At the time, Premier Danielle Smith said Alberta would continue to lead the country in renewable energy investment, but that the goal was to grow it in “well-defined and responsible ways” that guarantee grid reliability and affordability. 

There was a 93 per cent drop in new installed wind, solar and storage capacity in 2025 compared to 2022, the peak year for such developments in Alberta, said the Pembina report, citing data from the Alberta Electric System Operator and Alberta Utilities Commission. 

In 2025, less than one-fifth of new wind, solar and battery capacity installed in Canada was in Alberta. In the early 2020s, the trend was the exact reverse — four-fifths of Canadian renewables capacity was installed in Alberta, the report said. 

“It seems like developers are getting fed up with the state of the renewables market in Alberta and they’re looking to move elsewhere,” Noel said. 

“I’m hoping that they’re staying in Canada.” 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 10, 2026.