Our 2025 Integrated
Resource Plan

The energy transition has begun in Manitoba. How energy is made, how it’s delivered, and how it’s used are changing.

We’ve started to develop our 2025 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) — a repeatable process that helps us prepare for the energy world of tomorrow. Including information about both our electrical and natural gas systems and building on learnings from our 2023 IRP, the 2025 IRP will result in a recommended development plan — a sequence of actions we’ll need to take to help ensure we’re ready for the energy future.

Electricity demand could more than double in the next 20 years — but we are working to make sure we are ready.

Round 1 engagement

In fall 2024, we started to develop our 2025 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). We began our first round of engagement by re-connecting with Manitobans to seek feedback on key inputs and scenarios that included their future energy needs and priorities. We also asked what factors might be important to consider when evaluating our energy planning.

We connected with our customers and interested parties through focused discussions and workshops and through surveys of residential customers, large commercial customers, Indigenous community leadership, and municipalities. We also created a Technical Advisory Committee to gather diverse perspectives from representative groups across Manitoba on topics related to long-term energy planning.

Thank you to everyone who participated and provided feedback. Below is a summary of what we heard in the engagement and how that input was incorporated into our 2025 IRP.

What we heard and what we did

Feedback confirmed our key inputs and scenarios, and also led us to include analysis of more aggressive transportation and space heating emission reductions. We also updated some of our assumptions, like on energy policy, to better reflect the realities shared with us.

Customers shared future energy choices they are considering, like electric vehicles (EVs), solar panels and air- and ground-source heat pumps.

Communities shared energy goals, including: an increased focus on self-generation in the form of solar and/or wind energy; fleet electrification; and charging infrastructure. Large industrial customers let us know they expect they will use more electricity in the future.

Finally, participants indicated our evaluation themes—Reliability, Cost, Environment and Socio-economic—were appropriate. Reliability is consistently rated the most important factor in energy planning, and how these themes will be weighed against each other and balanced is important and requires further clarification.

Want to learn more about what we heard in Round 1 engagement and what we did with the feedback?

Read the full report (PDF, 1.5 MB)

Next steps

We are currently working to integrate this feedback into our modelling and analysis. The conversation will resume in Spring 2025, when we will seek feedback on our draft 2025 IRP road map.

This road map will include a draft development plan, which will outline a sequence of specific actions needed to meet the future energy needs of our customers. It will also include our learnings (key insights gained from the process), near-term actions (what we will have to do in the next 5-years,) and signposts (what external influences need to be watched, as they can impact our energy planning).

Exploring the potential for future energy investments

Demand for energy is growing and our supply is limited. As an integrated utility with both electricity and natural gas systems, Manitoba Hydro is well positioned to meet future energy needs in the province — but work since our 2023 IRP shows a need for new energy sources within five years.

Building new energy sources and creating new energy efficiency programs takes a long time (often multiple years). That’s why we’re continuing to plan: to ensure we’re able to meet your future energy needs as demand keeps growing.

Our 2023 IRP showed us what’s possible. Using the 2023 IRP, we built a road map showing what we learned, how we need to prepare for the future, and the signposts we need to watch to help us understand how (and how quickly) the energy landscape is changing.

As we’ve been monitoring these signposts and implementing our road map, it’s become clear: soon we’re going to need more energy resources.

That means we need a new IRP. As we develop it, we will gain a greater understanding of where we might need to invest — in things like new energy sources and infrastructure, energy efficiency programming, and much more.

Building on solid foundations

Our 2025 IRP will expand on what we learned in our 2023 IRP and will include knowledge gained from monitoring signposts.

2023 Integrated Resource Plan four page summary

Download (PDF, 1.6 MB)

Full report available in the document library.

What we call signposts can be described as indicators that inform on the timing, pace, magnitude or type of changes happening in the energy landscape. By reading these signposts, we can identify trends to anticipate and better understand when and how things are changing.

Our signposts include:

Government actions:
Energy policy across jurisdictions will significantly influence the pace and scale of decarbonization, leading to changes in the world of energy.
Customer decisions:
Choices customers make can impact energy demand — both the amount and how it’s used. Monitoring these decisions helps us understand how we can better supply natural gas and electricity.
Technologies & markets:
Keeping on top of technologies, including those used to produce, deliver, and store energy, and changes in energy markets.
Electric Vehicles (EVs):
Monitoring EV adoption and its impact on electricity demand will help us plan for the energy future.

2023 IRP Signpost Update

Download (PDF, 1.6 MB)

How we’re developing our 2025 IRP

Developing an IRP is a repeatable process, used to understand and prepare for the energy future.

Input from our customers, interested parties, and the broader energy planning community will help inform the decisions we make as we plan to provide the safe and reliable energy you count on.

Developing our 2025 IRP looks like this:

Illustration of a car on a road showing several stops for key milestones, listed below. The first round of engagement starting at Milestone 2, and the second round starting at Milestone 4.

Setting direction.
We set the direction of the 2025 IRP by identifying its purpose and what to include. This helps everyone understand what to expect.
Develop key inputs and scenarios.
We gather information and data from a wide variety of sources to outline key inputs and develop scenarios used in the IRP. We also establish the evaluation metrics in this phase before we start our modelling and analysis.
Modelling, analysis and evaluations.
Our experts use specialized computer models to test how Manitoba Hydro may serve future energy needs in the various scenarios. We will compare and evaluate the modeling and analysis outputs to see and share how they align with Manitobans’ energy needs.
Preliminary Recommendation.
From the evaluation of the modeling and analysis, we’ll draft a preliminary recommended development plan for meeting the needs of our customers for years to come. We will share and seek feedback on this draft plan and our proposed road map outlining what actions are needed now to prepare for the energy future.
Finalize the Integrated Resource Plan.
After reviewing feedback, we’ll finalize the recommended development plan and road map, and publish the IRP in Fall 2025.

More information about our 2025 IRP process:

Our 2025 IRP process (PDF, 1.3 MB)
Key inputs and scenarios (PDF, 1.6 MB)
Evaluation metrics (PDF, 1.2 MB)

Your voice matters

We can’t take these steps alone. We will continue to work together with Manitobans and the energy planning community to navigate the energy transition — that’s our commitment to you.

Sign up for our mailing list to hear about upcoming engagement opportunities — and to learn what we’re hearing from customers like you.

Join the planning process

Sign up to receive updates on our 2025 Integrated Resource Plan, including opportunities to take part in the process.

Learn more about our IRP

What is an Integrated Resource Plan (IRP)?

An IRP is a tool that utilities use to understand and prepare for future energy needs. For Manitoba Hydro, it accounts for both our electricity and natural gas systems and reflects combinations of customer needs, service territory, the energy products offered to customers, existing assets, and policy drivers.

A key part of an IRP is that it includes engagement with customers and interested parties as part of its development to ensure openness and transparency in the energy planning process.

Developing an IRP is a repeatable process that can be updated as future conditions evolve.

Why are we doing an IRP?

We are responsible for supplying Manitobans with safe and reliable energy. The energy transition, and particularly decarbonization, is increasing demand for electricity — and Manitoba Hydro’s supply is limited.

Every utility around the world either is or will be facing similar challenges. We must face these challenges head-on and work to understand what we need to do to continue meeting the energy needs of Manitobans.

What’s the difference between the 2023 IRP and the 2025 IRP?

Through significant research and discussions with customers, governments, and other interested parties across our province, we studied in the 2023 IRP how the energy transition could impact our natural gas and electricity systems. Then, we built a plan outlining several possible energy futures, or scenarios, along with steps we can take to best monitor and prepare for whatever tomorrow brings.

The output of the 2025 IRP will be a road map that includes a development plan. This development plan will identify a series of specific actions Manitoba Hydro can take to meet future energy needs, including potentially building new infrastructure or creating new programs to reduce consumption.

Our engagement process

Our engagement for the 2025 IRP will take place over two rounds between fall 2024 and spring 2025. The purpose is to listen and gather information and feedback from our customers and interested parties to understand their perspectives and their potential future energy needs.

Why engage?

Engaging with customers and interested parties helps us consider a broad range of perspectives within Manitoba. This will help to make sure that the outputs of the IRP — including the recommended development plan — take these into consideration.

Round 1: Develop planning inputs

Between October and December 2024, we gathered information to understand customers’ and interested parties’ future energy needs and priorities. We also sought feedback to develop metrics for evaluating our options and recommending a development plan.

Round 1 - presentation (PDF, 1.8 MB)
Round 1 - questions asked and answered (PDF, 1.2 MB)

Round 2: Get feedback on our draft plan

In Spring 2025, we’ll be seeking your feedback on our preliminary recommended development plan and our 2025 IRP road map.

Technical Advisory Committee

To ensure a broad range of input into our 2025 IRP, the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) has been designed to gather feedback from a variety of participants with a demonstrated interest in long-term energy planning in Manitoba, from key areas of interest. As we develop our 2025 IRP, we will consider feedback from the TAC alongside feedback heard through other 2025 IRP engagement. TAC meeting materials and notes are publicly available shortly after a meeting has been held.

Meeting materials and notes

Terms of Reference (PDF, 254 KB)
Membership list (PDF, 97 KB)

Meeting #1 - November 8, 2024

Welcome and introduction to the 2025 Integrated Resource Plan.

Presentation (PDF, 1.7 MB)
Meeting summary notes (PDF, 113 KB)

Meeting # 2 - November 21, 2024

Load projections, greenhouse gas emissions and resource options inventory.

Supporting materials (PDF, 412 KB)
Presentation (PDF, 1.8 MB)
Meeting summary notes (PDF, 111 KB)

Meeting #3 – December 2, 2024

Modelling, analysis, and evaluation.

Presentation (PDF, 759 KB)
Meeting summary notes (PDF, 170 KB)

Meeting #4 – January 31, 2025

Supplemental Session - Key concepts of energy planning.

Presentation (PDF, 6.6 MB)
Meeting summary notes (PDF, 146 KB)

Meeting #5

Meeting #5 was cancelled.

Meeting #6 - January 31, 2025

Preliminary modelling and analysis results.

Presentation (PDF, 7.9 MB)

2023 Integrated Resource Plan document library

Contact us

For more information about the Integrated Resource Planning process, email us.

Certain documents on this page were published before changes to provincial and federal laws about accessibility and environmental claims. We are doing an ongoing, but not completed, review to determine whether these documents, and any claims made in them, comply with the new legislative requirements.

Our 2025 Integrated Resource Plan