Solar co-ops help more people get a piece of the sun's energy

Source: Emily Chung | · CBC NEWS · | June 15, 2024

Community lets apartment dwellers, low-income people, investors participate in solar power

A man installs solar panels on the roof of Conexus Credit Union's North Albert branch in Regina in 2019. The project was paid for by investors with Wascana Solar Co-op, who are now making money from the power it produces. (Conexus Credit Union)

William Ingenthron is passionate about solar power. But it's not something he can add to his home — an apartment in Regina.

So he and a group of other like-minded city residents and investors got 115 solar panels put on the roof of Conexus Credit Union's North Albert branch — and are now earning money from the renewable power they produce while offsetting emissions from Saskatchewan's mostly fossil fuel-powered grid.

Their group is called the Wascana Solar Co-operative. It's one of dozens of solar co-operatives across the country helping more people invest and participate in the local clean energy economy, according to a 2022 census of community energy co-operatives by researchers at the University of Victoria and University of Saskatchewan.

Proponents say they're democratizing energy, generating investment in local solar projects and making clean energy more accessible for everyone as Canada pushes toward its goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.

What is a solar co-operative?

A co-operative is a corporation owned by members who use the corporation's products or services. 

Community energy co-operatives typically generate or invest in renewable energy, and most of those in Canada focus on solar, the census found.