| World news Canada Ontario and First Nations plan new hydroelectric projects
The Ontario government is working with Taykwa Tagamou Nation (TTN) and Moose Cree First Nation (MCFN) to develop new hydroelectric generating stations in Northern Ontario. The goal is to increase clean energy production and support regional economic growth. Two proposed stations – Nine Mile Rapids and Grand Rapids – could generate a combined 430MW of electricity, enough to power about 430,000 homes. The projects are part of the province’s efforts to meet rising electricity demand, particularly in the North, where demand is expected to increase by 81% by 2050. “For more than a century, nearly a quarter of Ontario’s power has come from clean hydroelectric energy,” said Stephen Lecce, Minister of Energy and Mines. “As energy demand rises in Ontario, especially in the North, our government is taking action by supporting early development work for the province’s first expansion of large-scale hydroelectricity in decades. By working together in the face of unjustified attacks from President Trump, Ontario will generate all the affordable electricity we need within our own borders, now and well into the future.”
TTN and MCFN will lead the co-planning process, working alongside the province and Ontario Power Generation (OPG) on early-stage studies and assessments. “This co-planning process represents a new approach – one that puts First Nations in the driver’s seat from the beginning,” said Chief Bruce Archibald of Taykwa Tagamou Nation. “True economic reconciliation means that we are not just participating in development. We’re shaping it, on our terms, for the benefit of our communities while supporting the province’s work to meet rising demand for electricity.” Letters of Intent have been signed by TTN and MCFN with OPG to support preliminary planning activities. “Moose Cree First Nation supports our work with Taykwa
Tagamou Nation and the Co-Planning Committee to explore potential future water-power development within the Moose River Basin,” said Chief Peter Wesley of Moose Cree First Nation. “This collaborative effort aims to meet the power needs of Ontario while
respecting the interests of both communities and building upon our partnership with OPG on the Lower Mattagami River Project. We will develop a streamlined process for hydro development, ensuring environmental impacts are evaluated and understood by our community members in addition to the benefits these projects will bring in terms of jobs and long-term revenue.” Greg Rickford, Minister of Indigenous Affairs and First Nations Economic Reconciliation, said the initiative reflects the province’s broader energy and reconciliation strategy. “This tremendous opportunity with Taykwa Tagamou Nation and Moose Cree First Nation is proof positive of our government’s commitment to building meaningful community and economic partnerships in the spirit of reconciliation,” Rickford said. “By working hand-in-hand with First Nations leaders and their communities, we are not only ensuring a sustainable energy future for Ontario, but also advancing economic self-determination and creating good-paying, local jobs.” The new projects would be the first net-new hydroelectric stations built in Ontario in a decade. They add to OPG’s ongoing refurbishments of existing stations in Northern Ontario, Niagara Region, Cornwall, and Eastern Ontario, part of a $4.7 billion investment to secure over 5,000MW of clean electricity and support more than 2,000 jobs. MPP George Pirie noted the importance of energy infrastructure for the region. “This is an exciting moment for Timmins, as these large-scale hydroelectric generation stations will provide a reliable source of electricity for Northeastern Ontario and beyond,” he said. “Our community serves as a vital hub for resource development and economic activity, and as we continue to grow, establishing a clean energy source for future development will benefit the North and all of Ontario.” The hydro projects are part of a broader plan that includes forest biomass electricity generation, major transmission line projects, competitive procurement incentives for Northern projects, and $10.9 billion in new energy efficiency programs.
Sweden
CorPower Ocean and NTNU partner on AI-driven wave energy project
Swedish wave energy developer CorPower Ocean has secured funding from Vinnova, Sweden’s national innovation agency, to test AI- driven performance and control enhancements for wave energy technology. The WACE (Wave energy AI-based Control Enhancement) Project is now underway and will continue until November 2025.
CorPower Ocean is partnering with the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), a leader in marine engineering research. This initiative follows CorPower Ocean’s recent €32 million Series B funding round, aimed at advancing wave energy as a mainstream renewable source. The investment came after successful testing of the company’s commercial-scale C4 device, which withstood record-breaking Atlantic storms while efficiently generating power.
WACE Project Lead and CorPower Ocean
Control Engineer Gabriel Forstner emphasized the potential of AI-based methods to enhance wave energy converter operations. “The optimal operation of wave energy converters is one of the key factors to lower the levelized cost of energy (LCOE), ultimately making it an attractive part of the future clean energy mix,” he said. “The main goal of the WACE Project is to combine AI methods with optimal control to enhance our existing operating strategy and further improve the performance of our point absorber type wave energy converter.” The project will use a model-based design framework to develop an AI-driven control strategy. A hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) test setup will validate the approach in real-time conditions. CorPower Ocean expects its wave energy converters (WECs) to be deployed in arrays or farms, generating significant data to refine model- predictive control strategies. The combination of AI with model-based control aims to optimize performance while ensuring stable operation.
A key feature of CorPower Ocean’s
technology is its ability to adjust to ocean conditions, reducing storm impact while enhancing power capture in regular waves. This has been demonstrated with the C4 device in Aguçadoura as part of the HiWave-5 demonstration project. The company compares this tuning capability to modern wind turbines, which adjust blade pitch to optimize performance based on wind conditions. Forstner highlighted the broader applications of AI-driven optimization beyond wave energy. “The idea of this project is to utilize an existing control algorithm for WECs and combine it with AI-based methods to improve the performance of the overall closed-loop control scheme,” he said. “This approach is not limited to WECs and can be extended to improve existing control algorithms in a wide range of industrial applications.” CorPower Ocean’s technology is being
integrated into wave farm projects along the Atlantic Arc, including sites in Scotland, Ireland, Portugal, and Norway. One of these, the Saoirse
www.waterpowermagazine.com | May 2025 | 5
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