Brian Zinchuk is editor and owner of Pipeline Online
Poplar River Power Station, one of three coal-fired power stations that are slated for refurbishment. Photo by Brian Zinchuk
A first season episode of The West Wing called “Take Out the Trash Day” explained that governments tend to put out bad news on Fridays. And at 1 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 2, SaskPower sent out a press release announcing it is seeking a 3.9 per cent rate increase effective February 1, 2026, and a further 3.9 per cent rate increase effective February 1, 2027.
The Crown Corporation said in a release it “requires additional funding to support record capital investments and continue providing reliable power for the people, businesses and communities of Saskatchewan.”
“Reliability and energy security are top priorities, and SaskPower will continue to make the necessary investments to ensure power is available for all customers whenever it is needed. In the coming years, SaskPower will continue to revitalize its fleet of coal-fired power plants, expand its transmission and distribution systems, and modernize the provincial grid,” the release said.
Last fall Minister of Crown Investments Corporation Jeremy Harrison said $900 million was being allocated for the revitalization of the coal fleet. He also noted on several occasions that if we were to build new natural gas plants instead of refurbishing the coal fleet, a much higher rate increase would be required.
In that vein, SaskPower’s three large scale natural gas fired power stations, all essentially clones of each other, have seen dramatic increased in costs. The Chinook Power Station at Swift Current, online in 2019, cost $605 million. The Great Plains Power Station at Moose Jaw, online in 2024, came in at $825 million. But the Aspen Power Station at Lanigan is expected to cost $1.7 billion, more than double Great Plains.
- 0106 SASPO-2874_Self Serve Campaign_New Connects_Youtube_v30106 SASPO-2874_Self Serve Campaign_New Connects_Youtube_v3
- 0105 SaskEnergy Commitment to Safety0105 SaskEnergy Commitment to Safety
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
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- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
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The announcement also came 12 hours after Alberta’s entire fleet of 1,760 wind turbines with a rated capacity of 5,684 megawatts was producing precisely zero power, collectively.
MC is maximum capacity, in megawatts. TNG is total net to grid. DCR is dispatched, and accepted, contingency reserve. This was at 1:18 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. AESO
NDP SaskPower Critic Aleana Young has also frequently predicted a SaskPower rate increase would be needed to cover expenditures, including the coal refurbishment.
“Utilities across Canada continue to face considerable rate pressures, and SaskPower is no exception,” said Rupen Pandya, SaskPower President and CEO. “We will continue to pursue a strategy of balancing the need for moderate rate increases with our required capital investments to maintain reliability for customers.”
The company said it plans to move forward with a rate application to the Saskatchewan Rate Review Panel. The February 1, 2026, increase will be implemented on an interim basis but will still be subject to the public rate review process, the Crown corporation said.
The average residential customer will see increases of $5/month in 2026 and $5/month in 2027, while the average farm customer will see increases of $11/month in 2026 and $11/month in 2027.
SaskPower’s most recent rate increases were 4 per cent each in 2022 and in 2023. Prior to that, SaskPower had not increased rates for four years.
“SaskPower is committed to keeping rates as low as possible for customers and maintaining affordability while ensuring the financial health of the company.”
- 0106 SASPO-2874_Self Serve Campaign_New Connects_Youtube_v30106 SASPO-2874_Self Serve Campaign_New Connects_Youtube_v3
- 0105 SaskEnergy Commitment to Safety0105 SaskEnergy Commitment to Safety
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 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
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
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NDP response
In an emailed statement, NDP Leader Carla Beck said, “Scott Moe and the Sask. Party have driven our province’s finances into the ground and there’s one group that will pay the price — Saskatchewan taxpayers.
“People here already report the highest financial anxiety in the country — four-in-10 are piling on debt or borrowing money just to put food on the kitchen table and pay rent, which has increased for 41-straight months.
“Now, they’re going to face increases on both their home power bills and their car insurance. We warned the Sask. Party of the impact these increases would have over and over during the Fall Sitting and they ignored us — and downright lied on multiple occasions, stating there wouldn’t be increases.
“These increases from SaskPower and SGI are just the beginning of what is a full-on fiscal trainwreck from an incompetent premier and ministers who are clearly out of ideas and have forgotten who they serve.
“Scott Moe has, even just this week, claimed Saskatchewan remains an affordable place to live — who exactly is he talking to? It’s certainly not everyday Saskatchewan people.
“Clearly, it’s time for change. The Saskatchewan NDP will continue to fight to make life affordable as the Official Opposition, and, when we form the next Saskatchewan Government, we will act on Day 1 to cut costs and clean up the massive mess this government has made of our province’s finances.”
Here’s the Take Out the Trash Day reference:
- 0106 SASPO-2874_Self Serve Campaign_New Connects_Youtube_v30106 SASPO-2874_Self Serve Campaign_New Connects_Youtube_v3
- 0105 SaskEnergy Commitment to Safety0105 SaskEnergy Commitment to Safety
- 0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended0102 Lori Carr Coal Extended
- 0100 Turnbull Project Manager0100 Turnbull Project Manager
- 0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p0099 Mryglod Steel 1080p
- 0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD0097 Eagle Sky Ventures LTD
- 0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it0095 Fast Trucking nearly 70 years good at it
- 0092 Turnbull projects big and small0092 Turnbull projects big and small
- 0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser0046 City of Estevan This is Estevan Teaser
- 0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech0077 Caprice Resources Stand Up For Free Speech
- 0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask0061 SIMSA 2024 For Sask Buy Sask
- 0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly0051 JML Hiring Pumpjack assembly
- 0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar0049 Scotsburn Dental soft guitar
- 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
- 0013 Panther Drilling PO ad 03 top drive rigs
- 0002 gilliss casing services0002 gilliss casing services
- 9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX9002 Pipeline Online 30 sec EBEX
- 9001