RHODENA: The proponents looking to bring wind energy to Cape Breton say Rhodena is one of the best spots to pursue this venture.
Halifax-based Community Wind Farms Inc. has partnered with Germany’s ABO Wind on the Rhodena Wind energy project, which will be constructed in southwestern Cape Breton between Highway 19 and TransCanada Highway 105.
Community Wind CEO Keith Towse tells The Reporter the Rhodena project, which is currently in the early stages will feature approximately 16 wind turbines that will be installed mostly on Crown land.
“I think it’s a great site for a wind farm,” Towse said. “We’re preparing a proposal, which we will submit to an RFP, which will be issued by the province later this year. If we’re successful we’ll proceed with environmental studies, more community meetings and continue our regiments.”
Capacity wise, he suggested the project is looking to build 100 megawatts of renewable energy per year at the Rhodena site; offsetting 150,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions annually and projects that it would power about a third of the residential properties in Cape Breton.
Towse indicated he has been attracted to that particular area of Cape Breton for five or six years. Of late, Community Wind has begun taking wind measurements at the site’s location, have completed “desktop studies” and some early environmental review and most recently, hosted a community information session in Port Hastings on September 14.
“We were really surprised we got so many people out, that there was so much interest in the community, we had about close to 40 people there,” he said. “I think they were coming to find out how the project would impact them and their community.”
During the information session, they provided material on how noisy the turbines would be, about what they might look like from a number of vantage points, and provided some of the benefits of the project.
In addition to having great wind, he explained Rhodena was selected as it has adequate setbacks from residential properties, highlighting they don’t build anything closer than 1,000 meters to residential properties and the proposed site is closer to 2,000 meters.
With the capacity to power more than 23,000 homes, the project will pay approximately $500,000 a year in property taxes to the local municipality.
As for what a project of this size would cost, Towse indicated if you had asked him this question eight years ago, he would have responded with spending $2 million for every megawatt they install.
“But prices have come down significantly,” he said. “So by the time we commission the project, we’ll probably have spent $150 million.”
Towse advised construction on the project is scheduled to begin in 2023 and they should be commissioning the project in late 2014.
“We think that we’ll end up actually building a project in Rhodena,” he said. “It may be 2025 or 2026 but we think it’s a great site and working with the community and bringing the advantages of renewable power to the community around Rhodena and around Cape Breton more generally.”