New Dundonald Avenue Solar Farm to power 400 Saskatoon homes

Saskatoon is officially harvesting sunlight.

On Tuesday, the City of Saskatoon and Saskatoon Light & Power officially opened the Dundonald Avenue Solar Farm.

The solar farm, which is visible from along Circle Drive on the east side of the city near 11th Street, is expected to generate enough energy to power about 400 homes, the size of a Saskatoon neighbourhood like Richmond Heights.

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The project is expected to cut electricity costs by about $300,000 each year and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 23,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent annually.

Saskatoon Mayor Cynthia Block speaks at the official opening of the Dundonald Avenue Solar Farm near Circle Drive and 11th Street in Saskatoon on June 2, 2026. (Libby Gray/650 CKOM)

Speaking at the official opening on Dundonald Ave on Tuesday, Saskatoon Mayor Cynthia Block said the project demonstrates how “practical investments today can help build a stronger, more resilient city for the future.

“When you look into it, you realize that this can actually make a pretty profound difference for our city,” Block said.

She said she appreciated that the project took underutilized land and transformed it into lasting value for the community.

Trevor Bell, director of Saskatoon Light and Power, speaks at the official opening of the Dundonald Avenue Solar Farm on June 2, 2026. He said the solar farm has an expected lifespan of 25-30 years and will have been paid for in half that time. (Libby Gray/650 CKOM)

Saskatoon Light and Power director, Trevor Bell, recalled when then-Saskatoon mayor Charlie Clark voiced seeing solar panels in the middle of roadways, interchanges, ramps and loops. He asked if Saskatoon could do something similar and creative.

Bell said the land selected was “the perfect size parcel that was big enough we could do something like this.

“Size matters for efficiency and economics,” Bell explained. “We could do little sites around, but we’re looking at other opportunities, either in our franchise area or just outside of our franchise area.”

Rows of solar panels at the Dundonald Avenue Solar Farm in Saskatoon on its opening on June 2, 2026. (Libby Gray/650 CKOM)

The project’s concept began with reservation of the land in 2017 by Saskatoon’s city council. About 5.7 hectares of land left over from the Circle Drive South project was used for the solar farm.

A feasibility study in 2020 followed, with public engagement the next year and city council’s approval in 2021. Construction began on the site in 2025.

The total cost of the project was $7.3 billion, coming in about $1 million under budget, according to Bell. The project is expected to pay for itself in about 15 years — about half of its expected 25-30 year lifespan.

The back side of solar panels at the Dundonald Avenue Solar Farm in Saskatoon on June 2, 2026. (Libby Gray/650 CKOM)

The federal government assisted in paying for the solar farm. Block told reporters that “all partners are always invited” when it comes to any city projects.

“We made a pretty conservative guess at how rates would be increasing,” Bell said. “My best guess is that we’re probably going to pay it off faster than we think we are.”

Bell characterized the farm as a medium-sized operation, with about 4,500 solar panels. The panels are bifacial, meaning they can absorb sunlight from the front and back, and even reflected off snow in the winter.

The panels won’t require active cleaning, despite close proximity to Circle Drive.

Rows of solar panels at the Dundonald Avenue Solar Farm in Saskatoon on its opening on June 2, 2026. (Libby Gray/650 CKOM)

The farm was also designed with “nature in mind,” Block shared, calling it “quite brilliant” to include naturalized plantings and pollinator-friendly species throughout the site to “improve biodiversity, strengthen soil health and reduce erosion.”

The species require less maintenance and are resilient in Saskatchewan’s weather extremes, even assisting with improving the efficiency of the solar panels by cooling the ground underneath.

“This project reminds us that building a stronger Saskatoon is not about any single investment,” Block shared. “It’s about making thoughtful choices, embracing innovation and leaving our city better positioned for the generations that follow.”