Brian Zinchuk is editor and owner of Pipeline Online
Former Alberta premier Rachel Notley posted a farewell video after announcing her departure as NDP leader on Jan. 16. X screenshot
The day after Alberta had four days in a row “grid alerts” for its electrical system due to the utter collapse of wind and solar power, and the lack of dispatchable baseload power, Rachel Notley took credit for expanding renewables and getting rid of coal. On the second of those grid alerts, the province was within half an hour of going into rotating blackouts, with temperatures -30 C and colder throughout Alberta.
That was part of her video departing message posted to X later on Tuesday, Jan. 16, several hours after the former premier announced her departure as leader of the Alberta New Democratic Party.
She said she didn’t want to into a long, deep policy rabbit hole but she wanted to “highlight just a few of the things that make me most proud.”
Among them, Notley said, “We secured Alberta’s first pipeline to tidewater in over 50 years, ensuring that the return to Albertans for the sale of the resources we all home is permanently increased.
“We eliminated coal-fired electricity and Alberta thereby increasing the health of countless innocents, and at the same time, kickstarting our renewable energy industry to be the fastest growing on the continent, all while significantly reducing our emissions in one fell swoop.
“And finally, in the midst of a recession caused by the International collapse in the price of oil, seriously votes. I didn’t cause that. We cut child poverty in half. But as I said, we didn’t get it all right. And Alberta told us so in April 2019,” she said, referring to her electoral defeat.
As it takes a number of years to get a wind or solar farm from initial idea to operation, a substantial number of the 43 solar and 45 wind farms in Alberta were initiated under her watch as premier from 2015-2019. Those combined 88 solar and wind farms, with a theoretical capacity of 6,131 megawatts, produced zero megawatts on Sunday morning, and next to no power each evening the province went under grid alert.
And the last coal-fired power plant, Genesee Generating Station Units 1 and 2, is expected to be converted to natural gas this spring.
Here’s the full video:
Thank you, Alberta.
Short of having and raising my family, the opportunity to serve this party and this province has been the honour of my life.
The people of Alberta are bold, friendly, open, caring and adventurous. I’ve learned so much from them.
Thank you to all the… pic.twitter.com/dJl3Gl8ue4
— Rachel Notley (@RachelNotley) January 17, 2024
- 0072 Outlaw Buckers and Oil Kings 20240072 Outlaw Buckers and Oil Kings 2024
- 0069 Sask Oil Show 2024 banquet tickets0069 Sask Oil Show 2024 banquet tickets
- 0071 Pride Upkeep 2024 Packages0071 Pride Upkeep 2024 Packages
- 0070 Sask Oil Show 2024 pre-register0070 Sask Oil Show 2024 pre-register
- 0068 Sask Oil Show 2024 booth0068 Sask Oil Show 2024 booth
- 0067 PFM SaskWorks Payroll Investment Plan0067 PFM SaskWorks Payroll Investment Plan
- 0066 WBPC Promo video 30 seconds0066 WBPC Promo video 30 seconds
- 0065 Anova Resources field operator Oxbow0065 Anova Resources field operator Oxbow
- 0064 Estevan OTS0064 Estevan OTS
- 0063 Turnbull Excavating hiring crusher0063 Turnbull Excavating hiring crusher
- 0062 TED_EPAC_Technology_300062 TED_EPAC_Technology_30
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0060 Arizona Lithium Lease building0060 Arizona Lithium Lease building
- 0059 Southeast College Heavy Equipment Operator0059 Southeast College Heavy Equipment Operator
- 0058 Royal Helium Steveville opens anonymous rocket0058 Royal Helium Steveville opens anonymous rocket
- 0055 Smart Power Be Smart with your Power office0055 Smart Power Be Smart with your Power office
- 0053 Kingston Midstream Westspur Alameda Click Before You Dig large text0053 Kingston Midstream Westspur Alameda Click Before You Dig large text
- 0052 Predator Inspections0052 Predator Inspections
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan
- 0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build0041 DEEP Since 2018 now we are going to build
- 0032 IWS Summer hiring rock trailer music
- 0022 Grimes winter hiring
- 0021 OSY Rentals S8 Promo
- 0018 IWS Hiring Royal Summer
- 0015 Latus Viro0015 Latus Viro
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0011
- 0006 JK Junior
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001