Over the next few years, wind turbines could be sprouting up in rural Manitoba like crocuses on a warm spring day.
A British Columbia company is the latest to show interest in the potential of establishing wind farms in the province to generate electricity. Manitoba Hydro and Shell are also examining that potential.
Victoria-based Sequoia Energy Inc. wants to build as many as 75 wind turbines in Manitoba, which would have the ability to generate up to 100 megawatts of electricity. That would be enough energy to power close to 40,000 homes while the turbines are running.
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Sequoia managing director Bob Spensley said Oct. 1 that the company is negotiating an agreement to sell energy from the wind turbines to Manitoba Hydro, a crown utility. The establishment of a connection to Manitoba Hydro’s transmission grid is also under negotiation.
If those agreements can be forged, construction of the wind farm could begin next spring, said Spensley, with completion later next year. His company, which is working in partnership with California’s Global Renewable Energy Partners, has identified an area covering 60 sq. kilometres in central Manitoba as suitable for the venture.
The cost of the project would be more than $170 million, Spensley said.
For farmers willing to host the turbines on their land, it would mean added revenue through lease payments from the turbine owners. Spensley said almost all the producers approached are interested.
The wind turbines also would be beneficial to the environment because they are considered a clean method to generate electricity, said Spensley.
“You could say that it’s a wind-wind situation.”
Manitoba Hydro and Shell also have teamed up to explore the province’s wind energy potential.
Data collection began at seven sites earlier this year to pinpoint which locations are best suited for wind turbines. A full year of data will be gathered and reviewed before decisions are made, said Hydro spokesperson Glenn Schneider.
“It’s becoming cost competitive with the more conventional forms of energy,” he said, noting that the technology used in wind turbines continues to improve.
However, he also described it as a less reliable source of energy, since the turbines tend to produce electricity only a third of the time because wind is not constant.
Sequoia chose its desired wind farm location based on historical data drawn from several meteorologists. Schneider speculated that since Sequoia is affiliated with a European firm that already is experienced at building wind farms overseas, it probably had access to expertise that made establishing test sites unnecessary.
Global Renewable Energy Partners, or GREP, is owned by a Danish firm that manufactures wind turbines. GREP has a wind farm in Quebec that generates 100 megawatts of energy and recently won a competition to create a wind farm on the north end of Vancouver Island.
The wind turbines planned for Manitoba by Sequoia and GREP would stand 80 metres tall to the hub where the blades join. Each blade would be 40 m long.
“They turn slowly and they’re quite attractive, in my opinion,” said Spensley. “Of course, I am biased.”
Among the wind farms already established on the Prairies are those at Gull Lake, Sask., and Pincher Creek, Alta.
