SaskPower has sold its 30 per cent share in the Muskeg River Cogeneration Station, located north of Fort McMurray, Alberta to Heartland Generation Ltd. (Heartland), a wholly-owned affiliate of Energy Capital Partners for approximately $40 million. The station was first commissioned in 2003.
“We’ve been a minority partner in this facility since the project began in 2001,” said Howard Matthews, SaskPower vice-president of power production and CEO of SaskPower International. “At the time, ATCO held the remaining interest. SaskPower and Heartland have worked together to negotiate the sale which will give Heartland sole ownership, as they bought ATCO’s share earlier this year.”
There will be no impact to SaskPower customers or staff. Most of the power generated at the station is used for operations at the Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNRL) Muskeg River and Jack Pine Mine oil sands operations in Alberta. None of the power was used in Saskatchewan and there are no SaskPower employees on site.
The sale allows SaskPower to receive cash today for the dividends that would have been paid over the next 20 years. The purchase price was independently verified by CIBC.
