Canada's Alberta set to ban renewables projects on prime land -report

(Reuters) - Alberta, a province that produces four-fifths of Canada's crude oil, is expected to ban the hosting of renewable power projects on prime land under a new raft of rules, according to a report in The Globe and Mail newspaper on Wednesday.

The changes to rules, set to be announced by Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Utilities Minister Nathan Neudorf on Wednesday, are the result of a provincial ban on the approval of renewable energy projects, the paper said.

Last year, Alberta halted such approvals until March 2024 amid concerns over renewables' reliability and land use, chilling investment in the rapidly growing industry and challenging the federal government's clean energy ambitions.

Alberta generates most of its electricity from natural gas and produces more than 82% of the country's crude oil.

The province's ban would undermine Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's clean electricity ambitions, which aim to make Canada's power grid emissions-free on a net basis by 2035, a goal that Alberta's Smith says is unrealistic.

Provincial government officials did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment.

The ban announcement, expected later in the day, will likely touch on issues with land use, reclamation and the obscuring of viewscapes, the report said.

Alberta will ban renewable electricity projects on private property it deems has excellent or good irrigation capability, and land deemed "fair" for hosting some speciality crops.

But, the paper said, the province will allow exemptions if a project "can demonstrate that crops or livestock can co-exist on the site alongside the renewable generation project."

Buffer zones of a minimum of 35 kilometres will be introduced around protected areas or what the government considers pristine viewscapes, and new wind projects will not be permitted within those zones, the report said.

(Reporting by Ashitha Shivaprasad in Bengaluru; Editing by Bernadette Baum)