Canada

Introduction

Canada experienced a relatively low deployment of new wind power in 2025 compared to previous years, comprising four projects totaling 348 MW. While growth in the past few years has been led by Alberta, recent policy and market changes in the province have led to a slowdown in renewable energy. One planned project was completed in Alberta in 2025 while two smaller projects led by First Nations in New Brunswick and the Yukon Territory were commissioned. However, Canada has over 15,000 MW of active power procurements for which wind developments are eligible. One of the earliest of these procurements resulted in the completion of the 200 MW Apuiat Wind Farm in Quebec, an exemplary project with First Nation leadership and marking the beginning of over 10,000 MW of wind power planned to come online in Quebec before 2035.

Market Development

Targets and Policy

Canada continues to work towards five-year emissions reduction goals (2030, 2035, 2040) with a 2050 net zero emissions target. Powering Canada's Future: A Clean Electricity Strategy, announced in December 2024, provides the core policy strategy in support of decarbonized power systems. The Clean Electricity Regulations were launched at the same time. Investment tax credits are now available for up to 30% of capital costs and are proving to be an effective policy for growth.

In 2025, nine of Canada's ten provinces had active or announced procurements for renewable energy, with many directly targeting new wind power projects. Supported by federal policies and emissions regulations, significant wind power investments can be anticipated over the coming decade.

India and Canada announced a new Strategic Energy Partnership in early 2026. This includes an agreement to strengthen collaboration on clean energy initiatives in wind, solar, biofuels and hydropower. [4][5]

Progress and Operational Details

The most recent (2024) competitive procurements for new wind power in Canada resulted in power purchase agreements with energy prices of $74 CAD/MWh to $78 CAD/MWh. [6][7] In 2025, Ontario provided a 5-year re-contracting opportunity for wind farms that had completed their initial 20-year power purchase agreement, resulting in a wide range of prices. [8]

The purchase of wind fleets by institutional investors grew in 2025. La Caisse (formerly CDPQ) purchased Innergex Renewable Energy for CAD $10 billion including over 1 GW of wind assets globally. [9] Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) purchased a large wind farm in Alberta, [10] while Canada Infrastructure Bank backed a 94.4 MW Nova Scotian wind farm as an effort to support Indigenous ownership in energy projects. [11]

In British Columbia, New Brunswick, and Quebec, there has been no new wind capacity installed in nearly 10 years. In Manitoba's case, 2025 marked its first competitive wind procurement framework. Data centres and distributed energy resources (DERs) are expected to drive a very different set of considerations, and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) initiated a Large Loads Action Plan to address these concerns. [12] Importantly, local requirements for involvement and ownership by First Nations are resulting in built-in community support with land stewardship benefits.

Matters Affecting Growth and Work to Remove Barriers

The limited growth in wind energy capacity in 2025 was the result of a slowdown in power purchase agreements from preceding years. Acceleration of load growth continues, with data centres driving much of the discussion.

Offshore wind is gaining momentum on Canada's East coast, and the economic and market opportunities are being assessed in studies such as the "Atlantic Canada Wind Energy Supply Chain Assessment." [13] Stantec's "Atlantic Canada Offshore Wind Integration and Transmission Study," supported by Natural Resources Canada, provides details on offshore development zones and transmission line readiness for large-scale offshore windfarms in the region. [14]

Projects built in 2025 were less influenced by the changing geopolitical dynamics that unfolded throughout the year, but uncertainty is anticipated in 2026. Backlogs on power system equipment such as transformers have had a material impact on wind power developments in Canada, like many other countries. [4]

Bat mortality mitigation policies are affecting wind farm operations in multiple provinces. In most cases, high minimum cut-in wind speeds are being considered by regulatory authorities rather than adaptive management strategies which could impact the economics of existing wind farms.

In December 2025, the federal government imposed 25% tariffs on global imports of steel and a wide selection of steel derivatives, including wind turbine towers. Wind energy proponents are seeking remissions to alleviate the added costs for towers needed for previously costed and submitted power procurement proceedings, as well as for tower volumes not able to be met by domestic capacities in the near term.

RD&D Activities

National RD&D Priorities and Budget

Significant RD&D priorities are as follows:

• Canada's 2025 federal budget introduced the Clean Electricity Investment Tax Credit as part of Bill C-15, applicable retroactively to April 2024, to encourage the deployment of clean electricity generation, storage, and transmission infrastructure. [15]
• The Offshore Wind Indigenous and Coastal Communities Grant Funding continued to fund up to CAD $10,000 annually to support Indigenous and coastal communities' engagement with offshore wind development. [16]
• The Kluane N'tsi Wind Energy Project, a 900 kW diesel-grid-tied turbine with battery storage, received CAD $13.5M in new federal funding. [17]
• The Nain Wind Microgrid, a wind and battery energy storage system led by the Nunatsiavut government in Newfoundland and Labrador, received CAD $13,167,000 in federal funding through NRCan's Energy Innovation Program. [18]

National Research Initiatives and Result

• The Canadian Wind Energy Research Network (CWERN) delivered its second, and then third, hybrid (in person & virtual) meeting in Spring and Fall 2025. The conferences included a mix of industry, government, and academic presenters and attendees, covering topics like offshore wind, cold climate challenges, aerodynamics, and grid integration. [2]
• The government of Nova Scotia released the third module of the Offshore Wind Roadmap, reflecting input from Indigenous and coastal communities, fisheries, environmental non-profits, industry stakeholders, and other interested parties. [19]
• Following the federal and provincial joint recognition of the country's first four offshore wind energy areas in 2025, [20] the Committee for the Regional Assessment of Offshore Wind Development in Nova Scotia submitted its Final Regional Assessment Report to federal and provincial ministers to determine next steps. [21]

Testing Facilities and Demonstration Projects

WEICan operates the grid-connected Wind Research & Development Park, housing 5 2 MW DeWind D9.5 turbines to advance renewable energy technologies. [22]

Collaborative Research

WEICan represents Canada in IEA Wind Task 46: Erosion of Wind Turbine Blades. In 2025, they released a peer reviewed paper titled Prioritizing Research for Enhancing the Technology Readiness Level of Wind Turbine Leading Edge Erosion Solutions, investigating mechanisms responsible for blade leading-edge erosion and advancing solutions therein. [23]

Nergica, a centre for applied research in renewable energy located in Gaspé, Québec, participates in IEA Tasks 41 (Distributed Wind), 50 (Hybrid Power Plants), 52 (Large-scale Deployment of Wind Lidar), and 54 (Cold Climate Wind Power). [24] Their participation promotes Canadian wind R&D at the national and international levels.

Impact of Wind Energy

Environmental Impact

The percentage of national electricity consumption met by wind energy continues to grow. Canada's 2025 update on the 2030 emissions reduction plan projects that by 2035 wind energy could account for up to 24% of total generation. [25] The update shows that in 2024, 79.4% of electricity generation in Canada was from renewable and non-GHG emitting sources with 7.5% coming from wind energy. The 2025 update notes that electricity emissions have decreased by 67 MT or 58% since 2005.

Canada's Clean Electricity Future provides the following forecast for wind energy growth by 2050. [26]

Canada's Energy Regulator provides some cost outlooks for expected declines in capital costs for clean energy including wind power. A range of 20 to 40% reduction in onshore wind power costs is expected between 2024 and 2050 based on the modelling scenarios. This is important in the context of emissions reductions as the public's priorities continue to shift from GHG reductions to affordability and economic competitiveness. Emission reduction actions face increasing scrutiny on cost.

Economic Benefits and Industry Development

Nationally and regionally, wind power supply chains are being studied. Market stakeholders are examining their domestic content opportunity, import resilience, and long-term security. Non-governmental organizations and consulting firms are investigating where Canada's wind turbine and balance-of-plant components are being globally sourced and what is available locally. Several onshore wind supply chain studies were still being completed at the end of 2025 with one regional study published, "Atlantic Canada Wind Energy Supply Chain Assessment," referenced above. Also noted previously, there is an estimated CAD $200 billion renewable energy opportunity for wind, solar and energy storage in the next 10 years. [13]

Electricity Human Resources Canada published their report, "Winds of Change," in 2025 providing some labour market information relating to the growth of renewable energy. [28] There were 1,670 wind turbine technicians/installers as of 2023 with an almost 15% vacancy rate in the occupation. Average annual growth rates for wind turbine technicians are forecasted to 2030 as follows:

• 5.5% under current measures scenario
• 6.6% under global net-zero scenario
• 7.5% under Canada Net-zero scenario

The Wind turbine technicians/Installers labour market demand is expected to increase from 2027 to 2030, although the long-term outlook for this occupation is uncertain.

Next Term

New announcements by the federal government regarding the Electricity Strategy are expected to have an impact on the future of Canada's wind energy market. Progress on nation building projects such as new, inter-provincial transmission lines will also have a significant impact on investor decisions.

Canada currently has more than 18,700 MW of wind energy installed with 15,000 MW of wind procurements underway for in service dates before 2035. At the same time, the Canadian Renewable Energy Association anticipates the need for an additional 15,000–40,000 MW of wind power by 2035 to meet forecasted demand depending on load materialization. [29]

References

1. Canadian Renewable Energy Association (2026). 2025 Data Release. https://renewablesassociation.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/2025-Data-Release-report-V2.pdf
2. Canada – Nova Scotia Offshore Energy Regulator (2026). Governments Designated Offshore Wind Energy Areas. https://cnsoer.ca/renewable-energy/lands-management/governments-designated-offshore-wind-energy-areas
3. W. Noel and J. Wang (2025). Alberta's renewables sector is down, but let's not count it out. https://www.pembina.org/op-ed/albertas-renewables-sector-down-lets-not-count-it-out
4. Prime Minister of Canada (2026). Prime Minister Carney secures ambitious new partnership with India focused on energy, talent, and technology. https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2026/03/02/prime-minister-carney-secures-ambitious-new-partnership-india-focused
5. BC Hydro (2025). BC Hydro secures Electricity Purchase Agreements with new renewable energy projects at a lower cost than previous calls. https://www.bchydro.com/news/press_centre/news_releases/2025/call-for-power-epas.html
6. Hydro-Québec (2023). A/O 2023-01: Appel d'offres pour l'acquisition de 1500 MW d'énergie eolienne. https://www.hydroquebec.com/achats-electricite-quebec/appels-propositions/2023-01.html
7. BC Hydro (2025). 2024 Call for Power Electricity Purchase Agreements. https://www.bchydro.com/content/dam/BCHydro/customer-portal/documents/corporate/regulatory-planning-documents/regulatory-matters/2025-02-12-bch-2024-call-for-power-epa.pdf
8. IESO. Resource Acquisition and Contracts. https://www.ieso.ca/Sector-Participants/Resource-Acquisition-and-Contracts/Medium-Term-RFP
9. La Caisse (2025). La Caisse finalizes the acquisition of Innergex and mobilizes a group of investors to support its long-term growth. https://www.lacaisse.com/en/news/pressreleases/caisse-finalizes-acquisition-innergex-mobilizes-group-investors-support-its-long
10. CIP. Travers – a textbook CIP investment. https://www.cip.com/projects/our-projects/travers/
11. Canada Infrastructure Bank (2025). CIB to invest $117.4 million in Weavers Mountain Wind. https://cib-bic.ca/en/medias/articles/cib-to-invest-117.4-million-in-weavers-mountain-wind
12. NERC (2026). Large Loads Action Plan. https://www.nerc.com/initiatives/large-loads-action-plan
13. Marine Renewables Canada (2026). Atlantic Canada Wind Energy Supply Chain Assessment. https://marinerenewables.ca/information-resources/studies-reports/atlantic-canada-wind-energy-supply-chain-assessment/
14. Stantec. Developing offshore wind energy and bringing forward cleaner technologies. https://www.stantec.com/en/projects/canada-projects/a/atlantic-canada-offshore-wind-integration-transmission-study
15. Environment and Climate Change Canada (2025). Accelerating Canada's clean power advantage. https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/news/2025/11/accelerating-canadas-clean-power-advantage.html
16. Natural Resources Canada (2026). The Offshore Wind Predevelopment Program. https://natural-resources.canada.ca/energy-sources/renewable-energy/offshore-wind-predevelopment-program
17. Natural Resources Canada (2025). Indigenous-Owned Wind Power Strengthens Energy Security in the North. https://www.canada.ca/en/natural-resources-canada/news/2025/09/indigenous-owned-wind-power-strengthens-energy-security-in-the-north.html
18. Natural Resources Canada (2026). Energy Innovation Program – Renewable Energy Demonstrations Call. Energy Innovation Program – Renewable Energy Demonstrations Call - Natural Resources Canada
19. Government of Nova Scotia (2025). Module 3: Offshore Wind Roadmap. http://novascotia.ca/offshore-wind/
20. Natural Resources Canada (2025). Canada's first four offshore wind energy areas have been designated on Nova Scotia's offshore. https://www.canada.ca/en/natural-resources-canada/news/2025/07/canadas-first-four-offshore-wind-energy-areas-have-been-designated-on-nova-scotias-offshore.html
21. Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (2025). Regional Assessment of Offshore Wind Development in Nova Scotia. https://iaac-aeic.gc.ca/050/evaluations/proj/83514
22. Wind Energy Institute of Canada (2026). Wind Research & Development Park Overview. https://www.weican.ca/our-facilities/wind-park/
23. Wind Energy Institute of Canada (2025). Prioritizing Research For Enhancing The Technology Readiness Level Of Wind Turbine Blade Leading-Edge Erosion Solutions. https://www.weican.ca/prioritizing-research-for-enhancing-the-technology-readiness-level-of-wind-turbine-blade-leading-edge-erosion-solutions/
24. Nergica (2026). Wind power – Research, innovation and optimization at the heart of wind power. https://nergica.com/en/champ-dexpertise/wind-power/
25. Government of Canada (2026). 2025 Progress Report on the 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan. https://www.canada.ca/en/services/environment/weather/climatechange/climate-plan/climate-plan-overview/emissions-reduction-2030/2025-progress-report.html
26. Government of Canada (2025). Canada's Clean Electricity Future. https://www.canada.ca/en/services/environment/weather/climatechange/climate-plan/clean-electricity.html
27. Canada Energy Regulator (2026). Canada's Energy Future 2026. https://www.cer-rec.gc.ca/en/data-analysis/canada-energy-future/2026/scenarios-and-assumptions/#b2
28. Electricity Human Resources Canada (2025). Winds of Change 2025. https://ehrc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/EHRC-Winds-of-Change-2025.pdf
29. CanREA (2025). Canada's Renewable Energy Market Outlook 2025. https://renewablesassociation.ca/canadas-renewable-energy-market-outlook-2025/