Ontario considered for wind turbine factory

A German maker of offshore wind turbines is targeting southern Ontario as the location for its first North American manufacturing plant, a venture that would create thousands of local jobs and inject hundreds of millions of dollars into the province’s economy. Multibrid, majority owned by French nuclear giant Areva SA, made the announcement this morning alongside officials from Trillium Power Wind Corp., a local renewable-energy developer that plans to build a massive wind farm in Lake Ontario about 15 kilometres offshore from Prince Edward County.

Trillium, which sees its Lake Ontario project as the beginning of a new industrial strategy for the province and a creator of high-value “green-collar” jobs, has established a wind-turbine buying consortium called Tai Wind committed to placing orders with a manufacturer that locates in Ontario.

“Ontario is perfectly placed to supply North America and even the world with offshore turbines, components, barges, and cranes needed to harness the resource wherever it may be,” said John Kourtoff, president and chief executive of Trillium. “That is the objective of the Tai Wind consortium. We want to build a solid economic foundation to make Ontario a world leader in renewable energy manufacturing and innovation.”

Hundreds of megawatts of onshore wind farms have been built around Ontario, but job creation has been limited because the turbines are manufactured from plants in Europe or the United States. Industry experts say there is currently no industrial strategy in Ontario to complement Queen’s Park’s support for renewable energy development.

The Great Lakes represent a unique opportunity - they have strong winds and their shallow lake beds and calm waters make for easier construction. In a report recently prepared for the Ontario Power Authority, Helimax Energy Inc. estimated that there are 64 offshore wind sites on the Ontario side of the Great Lakes, representing 35,000 megawatts - enough to power all businesses, homes and industry in the province when the wind blows.

Trillium aims to be the first to develop on the Great Lakes. Its Lake Ontario project would likely require an investment of more than a billion dollars and would consist of 150 turbines placed in waters no deeper than 30 metres. If built, it would be the largest wind project in North America and one of the largest offshore projects in the world.

“It’s a significant opportunity that every jurisdiction in the world is looking for,” said Kourtoff, adding that Multibrid’s interest in locating in Ontario makes it more than just a green power play. “We’re saying this is the first step to developing a sustainable, long-term green manufacturing economy.”

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