The Jardin d’Eole wind energy project will sell electricity to Hydro-Quebec under a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement that was awarded to Northland Power Inc. in the 2003 Hydro-Quebec Call for Tenders for wind power. The project will also receive a portion of the federal EcoEnergy incentive for wind power for 10 years.
"We are very proud of the whole team that brought in this project 11 days ahead of schedule and well within its $268 million total budget," said John Brace, President and CEO of the Fund. "The effort involved tremendous cooperation with Hydro-Quebec and support from all levels of government in Quebec, especially the RCM of Matane and the municipalities of Saint-Ulric, Saint-Leandre and the City of Matane, who did so much to make this project happen.
Our EPC contractor, Borea Construction, did a great job in delivering the project ahead of schedule. And, with over 60 landowners providing land for the turbines and infrastructure, we look forward to a long and close relationship with our community partners in the St Ulric and St Leandre area".
The wind farm was built by Borea Construction ULC, a Quebec-based joint venture between Montreal’s Pomerleau Construction and DH Blattner and Sons of Minnesota. The wind turbine towers and nacelles were supplied to General Electric from the Marmen facility in Matane, the nacelle shells were also fabricated in Matane at VCI Composites, and the blades were manufactured for General Electric by LM Glasfibre in their factory in Gaspe. In total, the project represents an investment of over $100 million in the Gaspesie economy and an additional $20 million in the Quebec economy outside the Gaspesie, and will provide ongoing employment to 10 local service and operations staff.
The Jardin d’Eole project was developed by Northland Power Inc. ("NPI") and the Fund acquired all the rights to the project following the July 2009 merger with NPI. This is the Fund’s second wind farm in Quebec, joining the 54 MW Mont Miller project that began operation in 2005 in Murdochville. It continues the Fund’s strategy of investing in sustainable ‘clean and green’ power generating assets with long-term power purchase agreements.
Northland Power Income Fund is a Canadian income trust that has ownership or economic interests in 10 power projects totaling over 1,100 megawatts ("MWs") (net 872 MWs). The Fund’s assets comprise natural-gas-fired plants which efficiently and cleanly produce electricity and steam as well as facilities generating renewable energy from wind and biomass. Sales are made almost entirely under long-term contracts with a current average duration of 14 years.
The Fund’s plants are located in Canada, the United States and Germany. The merger with NPI on July 16, 2009 internalized management and provided the Fund with the ability to grow organically by generating its own development opportunities, as well as bringing in NPI’s sizeable portfolio of high-quality development prospects.
The Fund’s trust units and convertible debentures, which trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols NPI.UN, NPI.DB and NPI.DB.A, are qualified investments for RRSPs and DPSPs under the Canadian Income Tax Act. The Fund has in place a distribution re-investment plan that allows Unitholders who are residents of Canada to automatically have their monthly cash distributions reinvested in additional units. Participants do not pay any costs associated with the plan, including brokerage commissions. For further information or to join the plan, contact your financial advisor or broker.
