A week after announcing the construction of its first wind farm in the country with 495 megawatts in Alberta, the American giant Amazon confirmed this Newspaper its intention to produce electricity for its facilities in Quebec.
“This is just the beginning,” warned Economy Minister Pierre Fitzgibbon of the private TES Canada project, which will produce 800 megawatts of electricity from wind power and 200 megawatts from solar energy.
The Journal asked Amazon, following the announcement of its mega wind project in Alberta, whether Quebec attracted its attention. The multinational corporation quickly raised its hand.
“Amazon is on track to power all of its operations with 100% renewable energy by 2025 and aims to explore renewable energy projects in all regions where the company operates,” replied Kristin Gable, who the door opened.
Although the company said it had “no projects currently underway in Quebec,” Amazon subsequently sent the Journal a map of its facilities, listing locations likely to be of interest to the company.
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Amazon has a fulfillment center in Lachine, sorting centers in Coteau-du-Lac and Longueuil, and servers in the Montreal area.
When questioned by Le Journal, the establishments in Coteau-du-Lac, Longueuil (Saint-Hubert) and the Lachine district replied that they had never heard of such projects.
The company also has a data center in Varennes, next to the Hydro-Québec Research Institute (IREQ), “which houses the largest power transformer in the network,” but the city of Montérégie also stated that it has not yet had any discussion in connection with this this topic.
Amazon has been very active in the renewable energy sector since the beginning of the year. The company has invested in more than 78 new solar and wind energy projects, including in Maryland, Texas and South Korea.
In Brazil, Amazon’s wind project has created more than 1,000 jobs, according to the company. Supported by Amazon
Amazon’s interest in electricity production comes at a time when environmentalists are concerned that TES Canada could produce electricity, seeing it as a breach of Hydro-Québec’s monopoly.
According to them, this company, co-founded by France Chrétien Desmarais, daughter of former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and wife of André Desmarais, deputy chairman of the Power Corporation, could set a precedent. On the contrary, Quebec considers that TES is “fully in line with current regulations”.
Amazon appetite
Either Amazon wants to produce electricity because it is having difficulty obtaining power blocks from Hydro-Québec, or it wants to produce electricity to make its plants more environmentally friendly around the world, analyzes Innocent Kamwa, full professor in the department of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Laval.
Innocent Kamwa, full professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Laval. Provided by Laval University
“Where do Amazon’s electrons go if Hydro-Québec has no transportation leeway? To avoid this problem, Amazon could install its wind energy near its data centers [Varennes, par exemple]when the environment is favorable …,” estimates the holder of the Canada Research Chair in decentralized and sustainable electrical systems for smart communities.
Amazon’s data center in Varennes. Photo Francis Halin
“This will give our network a big boost, I admit that [surtout l’hiver]. This is far from a bad idea, but I don’t really understand Amazon’s phones. Good citizen? Profitability? Security of supply? Or a little bit of everything,” concludes the former chief scientist of Hydro-Québec’s Smart Grid Innovation Program.
–In collaboration with Sylvain Larocque
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