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Wind Power
Green Power includes the Fund’s interest in three wind power projects including a 50% interest in the SunBridge project at Gull Lake, Saskatchewan ,and a 33% interest in each of the Magrath and Chin Chute projects in southern Alberta. Collectively referred to as Wind Power, the SunBridge, Magrath and Chin Chute wind power projects have a combined capacity of 71 megawatts (MW). SunBridge consists of 17 turbines, each with a capacity of 0.66 MW for an 11 MW total. The power from Sunbridge is delivered into the Saskatchewan power grid and is sold to Saskatchewan Power Corporation (SaskPower) under a long-term Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) which expires in 2022. Each of the Magrath and Chin Chute wind projects utilize 20 turbines, each turbine has a capacity of 1.5 MW, for a 30 MW total capacity per project. The energy produced at Magrath and Chin Chute is delivered into the Alberta power grid. The Fund has entered into long-term agreements to substantially fix the price received for its share of production on these projects. The Magrath contract expires on November 30, 2024, while the Chin Chute contract expires on December 31, 2017.
The Fund entered into a contract to sell all available emission reduction credits generated by the Fund’s interest in the Chin Chute and Magrath projects to Enbridge. The contract has an initial 20-year term ending October 1, 2026, and provides for a fixed price of $5 per tonne of avoided CO2 emissions, based on a negotiated rate of converting megawatts generated to tonnes of emissions reduced, plus applicable taxes.
Each of the Magrath and Chin Chute wind power projects receive $10 per megawatt hour (MWh) for electricity generated for a 10-year term under federal government support programs for renewable power. The Magrath project will continue to receive Wind Power Production Incentives (WPPI) funding until August 16, 2014, and the Chin Chute project will continue to receive ecoENERGY Renewable Power Program Incentives (ERPPI) funding up to March 31, 2017.
Various inspection and monitoring methods are utilized as well as ongoing maintenance to maintain the safety and integrity of the wind turbines and related facilities, and to minimize system disruptions. The Wind Power assets are subject to semi-annual maintenance to maintain the life of the turbines. Future maintenance expenditures will vary each year, and, given the infancy of this industry, long-term projections of maintenance capital expenditures will likely differ from the actual results.