Contract Win as Nova Scotia Powers Ahead with Wind Power

The Fairmont site was submitted to Nova Scotia Power following careful scrutiny of over 100 potential locations by Wind Prospect’s Halifax office, including environmental impact, wind resource, and accessibility to the electrical grid.

In total 20 bids were received by Nova Scotia Power in response to their most recent call for power, with only 10 other contracts being awarded. Austen Hughes is the Project Manager for the Fairmont Wind Farm and was part of the site selection team. Austen said:

“It is hoped that by 2015 one quarter of the province’s power needs will be satisfied by renewable energy sources, so this really is the tip of the iceberg for the province.

“The Fairmont wind energy project was identified through a rigorous and environmentally responsible site finding process, and we will be continuing this as we ramp up our development activities, so that we are ready to react quickly to future tendering opportunities.”

He added: “Wind Prospect is developing a large portfolio of wind farms across a number of Canadian provinces, and we are extremely happy to be working with Nova Scotia Power, right here in Nova Scotia.”

Rob Bennett, President and CEO of Nova Scotia Power said:

“Nova Scotia Power is committed to incorporating more renewable energy into our generation mix. We are proud to be able to work with small community-based projects, like Wind Prospect Inc. in Antigonish County, to bring more green energy to Nova Scotia and create new economic development opportunities in the province at an important time for our economy.”

European Expansion for Wind Prospect

Wind Prospect is set to bolster its European expansion with the opening of offices in both Istanbul and Warsaw during the first quarter of 2010.

The news comes hot on the heels of an announcement by Wind Prospect that it has secured a major European contract covering several countries, including Poland, Bulgaria and Sweden.

Wind Prospect has already recruited local personnel for the new Turkish and Polish offices as it looks to hit the ground running in 2010.

Both countries are seen as a core part of Wind Prospect’s European development strategy, with installed generation in Turkey alone, leaping from 50MW in 2006 to 433MW in 2008. Several GW of development projects are now in the pipeline and likely to come to fruition in 2010.

David Groves heads up the Advisory Services team and is confident about the scalability of wind development in both countries for Wind Prospect. David said:

“With the impetus of recent contract wins in Europe and building on the opening of our Paris office in 2007, we have taken the decision to open an office in Istanbul and another in Warsaw, providing support and advice on all aspects of development, from due diligence to construction and operations.

“Both Poland and Turkey have huge potential for commercial wind development, with Turkey alone seeing major growth in its installed capacity and a queue of projects waiting in the wings. By opening offices in both countries we get closer to the projects and are able to increase our levels of support to clients with interests in Eastern Europe.”

David is optimistic about prospects for further international office openings, as demand for Wind Prospect’s development expertise continues to accelerate throughout Europe and beyond.