An Alberta power generator has been fined for running a power plant without regulatory approval.
The Alberta Utilities Commission has fined Avex Energy nearly a quarter-million dollars for running a natural gas-fired generator while bypassing regulatory tests for safe and unobtrusive operation.
The Stettler-area generator ran from April to December 2021 without being licensed.
An agreed statement of facts says the commission began investigating the plant after receiving noise complaints from local residents and determined it was operating illegally.
The 3.5-megawatt plant was burning natural gas sourced from wells owned by the same company and selling the power to a bitcoin miner.
The Red Willow power plant has been shut since late December 2021.
Commission spokesman Geoff Scotton says such infractions are unusual but do occasionally occur.
