Poplar River power station

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Poplar River power station is an operating power station of at least 630-megawatts (MW) in Coronach, Hart Butte No. 11, Saskatchewan, Canada.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Plant name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Poplar River power station	Coronach, Hart Butte No. 11, Saskatchewan, Canada	49.057028, -105.485138 (exact)

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Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):

• Unit 1, Unit 2: 49.057028, -105.485138

Project Details

Table 2: Unit-level details

Unit name	Status	Fuel(s)	Capacity (MW)	Technology	Start year	Retired year	Emergency/Backup
Unit 1	Operating	coal: lignite	315	subcritical	1980	2050 (planned)	False
Unit 2	Operating	coal: lignite	315	subcritical	1983	2050 (planned)	False

Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details

Unit name	Owner	Parent
Unit 1	Saskatchewan Power Corp [100%]	Saskatchewan Power Corp [100.0%]
Unit 2	Saskatchewan Power Corp [100%]	Saskatchewan Power Corp [100.0%]

Project-level coal details

• Coal source(s): domestic

Ownership Tree

This ownership tree is part of the Global Energy Ownership Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor.

Background

The project to build the station was launched in the fall of 1974, with the Morrison Dam being constructed between 1975 and 1977 to provide cooling water for the station. Work on the power house began in 1975. The single stack is 122 m in height. The lignite used to power the station is supplied from the Luscar Mining Poplar River Coal Mine.

Incidents

In June 2023, it was reported that heavy rains in the Coronach area caused minor flooding, which brought mud and debris into the power station's wells. As a result, the power station went offline amid rising pressure on the grid due to high temperatures in the region. In August 2023, two months after the shutdown, Unit 2 had restarted and Unit 1 was expected to come back online within ten days.

Retirement and energy transition

In November 2016 SaskPower's CEO stated that the plant was slated for closure sometime in the 2020s. In December 2018 the federal government finalized regulations requiring all coal-fired plants in Alberta, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia to be retired by December 31, 2029.

As of 2019, the power station was expected to reach its end-of-life by 2030.

An award-winning feasibility study reported on in October 2022 included the possibility of converting the Poplar River power station into a vertical greenhouse following its decommissioning. In this scenario, the Westmoreland Coal Poplar River Mine would be repurposed for fertilizer production.

In December 2023, the Government of Saskatchewan announced CAD$550,000 in funding to the town of Coronach and the Rural Municipality of Hart Butte to evaluate alternative uses for coal, namely "char production and utilization." Saskatchewan-based Videre Energy reportedly planned on conducting a pilot project "focusing on taking lignite coal and converting it to low greenhouse gas emission products that can be used in energy and agriculture."

In September 2024, Saskatchewan’s provincial government announced that the communities of Estevan and Coronach would each receive CAD$5 million to assist with the upcoming coal power phaseout and energy transition.

Provincial plans at odds with federal goals for coal phaseout

In January 2025, the minister responsible for SaskPower reportedly said the provincial government would examine potentially refurbishing the two units at Poplar River. Without refurbishment, Units 1 and 2 were expected to reach their end-of-life in 2031 and 2032, respectively.

In June 2025, the provincial government sent a letter to SaskPower employees stating that they planned to extend the lives of all coal-fired power stations in the province. Poplar River power station, Boundary Dam power station, and Shand power station would reportedly “receive the work necessary” for the extensions in the “years to come.” The letter noted that Saskatchewan did not “recognize the legitimacy of the federal Clean Electricity Regulations,” referring to the Canadian government’s 2030 target for phasing out unabated coal-fired power. The province had yet to publish cost estimates for the refurbishment work.

In July 2025, Citizens for Public Justice (CPJ), the Saskatchewan Environmental Society (SES), and three individuals from Saskatchewan and Manitoba filed an application seeking judicial review of the Saskatchewan government’s decision to extend the lives of the province’s coal plants beyond 2030. One of the individuals was a 12-year-old from Saskatchewan. The applicants stated that the government’s decision was made without sufficient public consultation, was inconsistent with federal clean energy regulations, and breaches the rights of future children under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. An initial hearing at the Court of King’s Bench in Saskatoon was scheduled for August 12, 2025.

According to reporting from August 2025, the Saskatchewan government had allocated CAD$900 million (US$650 million) over four years to refurbish coal units at Boundary Dam power station, Shand power station, and Poplar River power station and keep the plants running beyond the 2030 federal coal phaseout target. In October 2025, SaskPower reportedly described Units 1 and 2 at Poplar River as among the “most critical” coal units for refurbishment.

Later in October 2025, the Saskatchewan government reiterated plans to continue operating coal units at Boundary Dam power station, Shand power station, and Poplar River power station, saying that provincial utility SaskPower “will extend the life of up to 1530 MW of existing coal-fired power assets beyond 2030 and out as far as 2050.” The government’s Saskatchewan First Energy Security and Supply Plan backed the construction of two 300 MW small modular reactors near Estevan, and envisaged the potential development of large-scale nuclear plants in the province. According to the plan, coal would serve as a “bridge” to nuclear power.

In November 2025, a hearing was held for the court case involving CPJ, SES, and three individuals from Saskatchewan and Manitoba who had requested a judicial review of the Saskatchewan government’s June 2025 decision to continue operating coal plants beyond 2030. The provincial government had filed a motion requesting that the court reject the application. The groups asked the Court to allow the judicial review to proceed and to grant an interim stay of the province’s plan to extend the life of its coal fleet. Justice R.S. Smith reportedly adjourned the hearing and would decide on whether the court can hear the case and the government’s motion to strike the proceedings.

In January 2026, the Court of King’s Bench dismissed the request for a judicial review sought by SES, CPJ, and the citizens group. The court reportedly ruled that the legality of the coal plants’ continued operation was not for the court to determine. Following the ruling, SES said it was “disappointed” by the decision. In February 2026, SES and its co-applicants filed a request for appeal with the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal.

According to reporting from March 2026, SaskPower had submitted a rate case to the province’s Rate Review Panel saying that the utility was extending the lives of its coal power plants for another 25 years. Refurbishment of Poplar River Units 1 and 2 was slated to start in 2033 and 2031, respectively. The rate case also reportedly indicated that refurbishing the province’s coal plants would cost CAD$2.6 billion (US$1.87 billion), nearly three times the CAD$900 million estimate previously given by the provincial government.

In July 2026, an analysis by a University of Regina economics professor estimated that SaskPower’s plan to keep its three coal plants operating past 2029 would cost CAD$30.2 billion (US$21.5 billion) over the next 20 years. If carbon pricing were to be applied at the same level referred to in a recent agreement between the federal government and the province, the cost would rise to CAD$46.4 billion (US$33 billion).

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Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of coal-fired power stations, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.