ENMAX Begins Construction on Taber Wind Farm ....................................
CALGARY, May 18
ENMAX Corporation today announced it is
commencing construction of an 80 megawatt (MW) wind power generating facility
in the Municipal District of Taber in southern Alberta. Construction will
begin immediately and be completed in the first quarter of 2007, at a total
approximate cost of $140 million.
"We are excited to get started," said Gary Holden, President and CEO,
ENMAX Corporation. "We have been working closely with the M.D. of Taber and
members of the community on this project and are looking forward to seeing the
wind farm take shape."
Initial work will include building a temporary facilities area and a
permanent substation. Once the facilities area and access right-of-ways are in
place, the foundations for the 37 turbines will be excavated and concrete
poured. The Taber Wind Farm will employ a technologically advanced wind
turbine design supplied by ENERCON, a German manufacturer.
A key element of the ENMAX wind power generating facility is a 20-year
supply agreement with The City of Calgary. The wind farm will have a total
power output of over 80MW, enough to power 75 per cent of The City's
operations.
"Calgary's efforts to switch to green energy, reduce our energy use and
adopt the latest in environmental technology will serve as a model for other
cities to follow." said Dave Bronconnier, Mayor, City of Calgary. "When the
City starts to take delivery of the green electricity in 2007, it will be the
only major city in Canada to draw at least three-quarters of its electricity
from green power. The agreement is the largest green power usage commitment of
any municipality in North America."
The federal government welcomed the start of construction for the Taber
Wind Farm and focused on its ongoing support for renewable energy.
"The new Government of Canada is pleased to contribute more than
$19 million over 10 years towards this project," said the Honourable Gary
Lunn, Minister of Natural Resources. "In the coming years, the potential for
large-scale wind power generation will be immense. As we develop a
made-in-Canada plan for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving the
quality of our air, water and land, projects such as this will play an
important role in applying the innovative technologies that Canada will need."
ENMAX Corporation and its predecessors have provided Albertans with safe
and reliable electricity for over 100 years. ENMAX provides electricity,
natural gas, renewable energy and value-added services to more than 457,500
residential, commercial and industrial customers in Alberta through its
subsidiary companies. In addition to owning 50 per cent of the McBride Lake
Wind Farm - one of Canada's largest wind power facilities - the company has
the first and largest green power marketing program of its kind in Canada. In
2006, ENMAX Energy Corporation received the Consumer Champion Award for its
ground-breaking EasyMax program. For more information, visit our website at
enmax.com. |
