Harnessing Canada's Wind Resources
Nov 23 - CIM Bulletin
Established in 1899 by Mormon workers from Utah and Idaho, the town of Magrath, Alberta, also known as "The Garden City," is situated in the prairie foothills of the Rocky Mountains. The town folk recently welcomed a few new additions to the neighbourhood-20 wind turbines.
The size of the Magrath wind turbines is nothing short of impressive. The hub
(where the blades connect at the centre) is 65 metres above the ground,
equivalent in height to a 23-story building, and the turbine's bladespan is 34
metres, which is close to the wingspan of a Boeing 737-900 airplane.
An 'up-close' view of the Magrath project
Exactly how does a wind turbine function? It captures the kinetic energy from
the wind and converts it into electrical energy in the form of electricity. In
other words, wind turns the blades, which then turn a shaft inside the turbine
that moves a magnetic field inside a generator, thus creating electricity.
According to the Canadian Wind Energy Association, Canada boasts important
wind energy resources. It is estimated that the wind resources in Nunavik alone
could produce 40% of the country's electricity needs. In early 2004, there was
enough electricity produced in Canada from wind turbines to power approximately
100,000 homes.
So why does an oil and gas giant like Suncor decide to harness these
important resources? "H supports the company's climate change action plan
established a decade ago, to invest in areas such as renewable energy,
energyefficient projects, and carbon capture research," said Jim Provias,
vice-president of renewable energy and business development, Suncor. Magrath is
the company's second wind power project. SunBridge, which began operation in
January 2002, is an 11 megawatt joint project with Enbridge located in southern
Saskatchewan.
The development of fossil fuel plants, large hydro dams, or nuclear plants
does not happen overnight; such projects could take up to several years to
implement. A wind farm, however, can provide a reliable source of electricity
within a relatively short time frame.
The construction activity took three months over a 12-month period when
allowing for winter, and generated employment, peaking at 70 people onsite this
past summer. Long-term local employment of two people will cover the operation
of the turbines. Local stakeholders were met with on a regular basis for
consultation and involvement in the project.
Each turbine at Magrath has a generation capacity of 1.5 megawatts of energy.
The average anticipated electricity output from the wind farm is enough
electricity to light approximately 13,000 homes. It is estimated that the
project will offset approximately 82,000 t/yr CO2 emissions. This translates
into the removal of 12,000 cars from Canadian roads. Combined, SunBridge and
Magrath will offset 115,000 t/yr CO2.
The project sits on private land that is leased from the landowners. With
safety in the forefront of most companies' strategies, the site is naturally
fenced in by other properties, highways, and secondary roads. In compliance with
regulations for the construction and operation of wind farms, the turbines are
equipped with navigational lights and safety systems for maintenance work.
Blades on the ground at Magrath
Erecting the turbine
Partnering with EHN Wind Power Canada on the Magrath project provided
significant technical expertise; the company has participated in the development
of close to 100 wind farm projects throughout the world.
Because wind power is a fairly new technology, it still requires a premium
over conventional electricity prices, however, it is becoming more competitive
with technological advances. "The cost of electricity is heavily influenced
by commodity prices of natural gas and oil," commented Provias.
"Currently the price of natural gas and crude oil are high from a
historical perspective, which is increasing electricity prices in some markets,
closing the price gap with wind energy. "
Currently, the cost of generating electricity via wind energy ranges between
$0.06 to $0.f2/kWh depending on location compared to the $0.05/kWh I pay with
Hydro-Qubec. However, it is encouraging to know that it cost $0.30/kWh to
generate just a decade ago. To support wind energy development in Canada, the
Federal Government put in place a $260 million Wind Power Production Incentive
Program. The Magrath project qualifies for the incentive payment and over the
next 10 years will receive $9 million to support the overall project economics.
The beauty of renewable energy
The Magrath turbines developed by GE Wind are not only equipped with stateof-the-art
wind monitoring equipment, but also computers that respond to changing wind
conditions to ensure efficiency. The turbines also produce very little noise.
It is estimated that operating costs at Magrath will hover around $10/MWh,
and typical areas for maintenance are the turbine gearbox and generator.
Maintenance of the turbine gearbox and generators are part of the annual
operating costs. Currently, one on-site operator is employed at Magrath.
There are approximately 3f wind farms in operation in Canada. Wind power is
the world's fastest growing energy source. "The Magrath Wind Power Project
demonstrates that we benefit both environmentally and economically by spurring
technological innovation that contributes to our climate change goals and
reduces greenhouse gas emissions," stated the Hon. R. John Efford, Minister
of Natural Resources Canada. Regardless of how the Kyoto Protocol develops,
Suncor is committed to dealing with climate change and living up to its vision
of being a sustainable energy company.
'The average anticipated electricity output from the wind farm is enough
electricity to light approximately 13,000 homes.
Copyright Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy &
Petroleum Oct 2004