Pattern Energy Group and Nigig Power Corporation have secured $1 billion in financing for their joint venture, a 300 MW Henvey Inlet Wind farm which will rise on northeastern shore of Georgian Bay.
Henvey Inlet Wind will generate clean power through 87 Vestas 3.45 MW turbines with a 136-m rotor diameter and 132-m hub height. One hundred per cent of its production will be purchased by the Independent Electricity System Operator under a 20-year contract.
Construction of the project is expected to create up to 500 job opportunities to the province. Once fully operational, the facility will employ approximately 15 full-time workers and create demand for more than 100 indirect jobs.
“This landmark project is a first on many fronts as the largest wind project in Ontario, the largest on-reserve wind installation in Canada, the highest hub heights in North America, and the first to develop a First Nation Environmental Stewardship Regime under the First Nations Lands Management Act,” said Pattern Energy Group CEO Mike Garland.
The wind farm is scheduled to start operations in the first half of 2019. By then, it will provide clean energy for around 100,000 homes each year. Aside from the income made through project distributions, the facility is making more than $8 million in lease royalties annually.
“We aren’t just building a wind farm, we’re building an economy,” said Nigig Power Corporation CEO and president Ken Noble. “The net proceeds over the next two decades of operations will provide financial resources to transform the local economy, expand all community services, relieve poverty and create employment.”
Upon completion of the project’s construction, Pattern Energy Group and Nigig Power Corporation will continue to jointly own and operate Henvey Inlet Wind.