Ron Ryder
The Guardian
May 29, 2004

With Prince Edward Island poised to reveal its strategy for renewable energy, Maritime Electric wants to make sure its traditional forms of power generation are part of the picture.

Energy Minister Jamie Ballem is getting ready to release a report looking at the viability of renewable energy sources as a means of supplying electricity for P.E.I. needs. A more extensive study of provincial energy options as a whole is expected next year.

The province has recently invested in expanding the wind-powered generation facilities at North Cape and is testing for possible new wind sites at other points along the north shore.

Ballem has also begun exploring the potential of using hydrogen power in conjunction with windmill generation to supply a regular feed of power generated within the Island’s shores.

The exploration of futuristic energy options comes as Maritime Electric is working on plans to expand a very traditional form of generation.

The company is seeking approval from the city of Charlottetown, Department of Environment and the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission for a $35-million diesel-fired turbine capable of generating 50 megawatts of power.

Company vice-president John Gaudet said he doesn’t see any conflict between Maritime Electric’s plans and the province’s interest in “green” power.

“A wind farm is one potential source of energy but it’s an intermittent one,” Gaudet said Thursday.

“If I check my computer right the input from the wind farm is . . . nothing. It’s not producing. But an hour from now the turbines could be generating at full capacity.

“What the generating plant we are looking at does is give us reliability so that we can have a certain supply. To have people sit down at home, put a tape in the VCR and have the light go out because there’s no wind – they wouldn’t stand for it.”

Gaudet said he could see wind generation developing on the Island with a maximum generating capacity of 50 megawatts of the provincial 200 megawatt appetite. But he said with the variability of wind power he would not expect wind to supply more than between 10 and 15 per cent of the province’s annual electricity use.

Gaudet’s view is shared by Energy Probe, a national consumer and environmental advocacy group interested in energy.

Executive director Tom Adams said P.E.I. is already becoming a national leader in wind generation, but the province is well-advised to make sure it has a steady supply of power either from off-Island contracts or on-Island generation.

“You have to be sure that the system will be viable. The best wind energy regime in the world, in New Zealand, generates at about 50 per cent of its capacity,” he said.

“There hasn’t been as much efficiency achieved with wind farms in eastern Canada.”

Adams said the measure for P.E.I. is how much wind power makes sense in our system. He said the trick is to strike a balance between the costs of wind supply and the costs of contracts and plants to fill in when the wind doesn’t blow hard enough to generate a spark.

“In terms of percentage of supply, even the amount of power being generated through the experimental efforts makes Prince Edward Island a national leader. You look at the 100 megawatt wind site Quebec developed in Gaspesie and it sounds pretty big, but P.E.I.’s energy consumption is 1/170 of what they use in Quebec,” Adams said.

“If P.E.I. keeps developing wind, I think it should, but it has to be at a level that makes sense . . . The mortgage is always there even when the wind isn’t blowing. You have the capital costs for all this construction.”