June 20, 2024

The resolution suggests SaskPower work with SARM to develop an action plan to revitalize the electrical grid to meet today’s needs and into the future by using taller power poles and moving power lines to the property adjacent to roads as opposed to in the fields.

SaskPower’s current standard is to construct new distribution power lines and poles inside rural road allowances. This reduces operating and maintenance costs for SaskPower and reduces safety risks for agricultural producers by eliminating the need for agricultural producers to conduct farming operations around and under distribution lines and poles in their fields.

SaskPower’s service area spans over 652,000 square kilometers with approximately 1.2 million distribution poles and approximately 145,000 circuit Kilometers of distribution power lines. SaskPower must prioritize rebuild efforts. As power lines and poles in fields reach their end-of-life, SaskPower does investigate opportunities to rebuild in road allowances. SaskPower has a cost sharing policy to support customers who would like overhead distribution powerlines and poles to be relocated from the field to the road allowance sooner. If customers are interested in more information on this cost-sharing policy, they can access this information on SaskPower.com or by contacting their area SaskPower Business Manager for further details.

Hon. Dustin Duncan – Minister Responsible for SaskPower, Government of Saskatchewan