Kingsbridge Wind Power Project
Kingsbridge is a 40 MW wind farm, owned by Capital Power, located within the Township of Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh, near the community of Goderich.
It consists of 22 1.8 MW Vestas V-80 turbines and one 0.7 MW Vestas turbine. The Vestas V-80 turbines were commissioned in March 2006 and have been very reliable, with annual availability for the 2007 and 2008 operating years exceeding 98.6%. The project contributes approximately 109,000 MWh (megawatt hours) of renewable power annually.
For these years, the Kingsbridge facility was the best-performing wind farm in Ontario based on capacity factor, as measured from data received by the Independent Electric System Operator. The Kingsbridge wind farm serves the electricity requirements in the region, has favourable wind conditions from Lake Huron and is strategically located within 200 kilometres of major load centres in the Greater Toronto Area.
The wind turbines are located on land leased from eight local landholders. A subsidiary of Capital Power has secured additional leases on sites close to the existing wind farm which may provide further growth opportunities.
Kingsbridge receives wind power production incentive payments under the Wind Power Production Incentive Program of the Government of Canada. Under the program, Capital Power receives from the Canadian federal government $10/MWh up to a maximum of approximately $1.1 millionannually, a total of approximately $10.8 millionthrough to March 2016.
Kingsbridge provides Capital Power with long-term, contracted, stable cash flows as it is located in an area having favourable wind conditions in Ontario. It also provides Capital Power with the market presence to help the company pursue larger wind development projects, such as the neighbouring Kingsbridge Phase II project and wind projects in British Columbia. Kingsbridge operates under the terms of two energy supply contracts with the Ontario Power Authority.
Responsibility to the community
Capital Power is committed to consulting and engaging the local community and stakeholders. Capital Power also provides regular updates to our neighbours about our operations through update bulletins.