Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So my questions are for the Minister of Strategic Infrastructure, Energy, and Supply Chains, or if I have that wrong it's something along those lines.
In my Member's statement, I referenced a backgrounder that's available online produced by NTPC. It's not dated. But it's a list of ideas and possible strategies to respond to energy challenges; in that case, specifically around low water levels. And so one of those ideas -- my question for the Minister is, first, has NTPC pursued the idea of installing a 10-megawatt battery at Jackfish that could store up to 15 minutes of reserve energy and thereby eliminate most of our power outages in the North Slave grid. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Yellowknife North. Minister responsible for Strategic Infrastructure, Energy, and Supply Chains.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, if we're all talking about the same backgrounder, and it would appear from the list read that we are, this backgrounder dates back to 2015, which would be the last time that we were in a low water cycle as we were a couple of years ago when Yellowknife ended up on diesel here in 2023-2024 roughly. So back in 2015, this backgrounder was developed. I can certainly speak to the extent that I am able, that there was some consideration back then given to it. I obviously wasn't here at Cabinet, and the board has certainly changed over somewhat significantly, particularly in the last few months on that. So at this point, Mr. Speaker, it makes it a bit difficult to say whether or not -- or to speak for what decisions might have been made by the Cabinet at the time or by the Assembly at the time. I certainly can say, Mr. Speaker, that looking at battery storage does continue to be something that NTPC and strategic infrastructure are doing with respect to both the integrated systems planning work that's underway for the whole of the territory as well as for the North Slave resiliency study that we are expecting out this spring. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So I can appreciate that some of these ideas may have come a while ago but still may be relevant, and so I am wondering if the Minister has any information about whether the idea is being pursued of installing modular units at Jackfish plant. At the time it was referenced that they could be up to 5.75 total megawatts, and the idea was to increase capacity and improve efficiency and reliability. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, I can confirm that NTPC did install modular units at Jackfish to increase the capacity. There were installations completed back in 2018 and 2019, and there's also a new 4.4 -- I don't know the capacity of those two, but there is a 4.4-megawatt generator also at Jackfish plant. It does remain, Mr. Speaker, that the system is still reliant on these -- on this single generation facility and so, again, that doesn't necessarily answer all of the challenges we have within the lack of a wider grid or redundancy in the grid but that element was taken care of. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister responsible for Strategic Infrastructure, Energy, and Supply Chains. Member from Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. So that's good news. And so finally, I mean, ideas are raised from time to time, especially with our lowest water years, which we didn't necessarily have last year, but of the need to increase energy generation capacity -- yeah, so has the Minister -- or is the Minister aware of whether NTPC has actually been pursuing ideas to increase energy generation capacity within the Snare system such as increasing the capacity of the Bluefish reservoir and wind and solar potential? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Yes, indeed, Mr. Speaker. And, Mr. Speaker, there's a number of efforts underway, not only -- not only within the Snare but across the Northwest Territories in terms of micro hydro capacity in some smaller communities that would be unlikely to ever find themselves on our existing hydro grids, as well as with the Tlicho government and opportunities within the Tlicho region near Whati. So that is a project that's also being looked at, as well as to increase the transition -- or transmission capacity to some of the communities who would be on the grid. So in order to also, again, just to be able to provide some more communities with power. But so yes, the short answer is yes. There's also efforts being undertaken, I understand, to examine wind capacity here closer to Yellowknife, solar capacity. And with that, Mr. Speaker, we do have the experience of battery systems in both Colville Lake and in Inuvik, which would be then necessary to support a smoothing out of the intermittent power that would be generated by those systems. There is not one solution here, Mr. Speaker, and I am happy to receive further questions on it, but we will continue to look for whatever opportunities there are. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister responsible for Strategic Infrastructure, Energy, and Supply Chains. Oral questions. Member from Deh Cho.
