Canada: Grand Opening of 270 MW K2 Wind Power Project

The K2 Wind Power Facility in Ontario held a Grand Opening Event hosted by Samsung Renewable Energy Inc., Capital Power Corporation and Pattern Energy Group Inc.. One of Canada’s largest wind power facilities, the 270 megawatt (MW) K2 Wind facility is located in the Township of Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh (ACW) in southwestern Ontario, and is expected to generate clean energy for approximately 100,000 Ontario homes annually. The commissioning of K2 Wind allowed Canada to surpass 10 gigawatts (GW) of installed wind energy capacity, making it the seventh country in the world to reach this level of wind power capacity, according to the Canadian Wind Energy Association.

"On behalf of the Council of the Township of Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh I would like to congratulate everyone who had a part in this long and complex project that created one of Canada's largest wind-energy facilities," said Deputy Reeve Roger Watt. "We would especially like to thank K2 Wind for its commitment to the Community Benefit Fund. This will enable the Township to undertake infrastructure-improvement and community-development projects over the next 20 years that we otherwise simply would not be able to pursue."

“Samsung is proud to be part of the Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh community and is excited to complete our third wind project in Ontario,” said Mr. Steve Cho, Vice President, Samsung C&T. “The K2 Wind facility along with our other projects in the Province are creating thousands of high-skilled jobs that will benefit real people in this community and across Ontario.”

“As one of the largest wind power facilities in Canada, K2 Wind is a significant addition to our renewable energy capacity,” said Darcy Trufyn, Capital Power’s Senior Vice President Operations, Engineering and Construction. “Yesterday, we celebrated the grand opening of K2 Wind, thanked the community for their support and acknowledge all those who have worked with us on the project.”

“This event is to thank the community, the landowners and the local officials that worked to make this project possible,” said Mike Garland, CEO of Pattern Energy. “Going forward, K2 Wind will return many benefits to the community by providing ongoing funding for important community projects and initiatives at the same time helping to reduce pollution for Ontario and the globe.”

“Congratulations to our partners on the completion of the K2 Wind farm. With locally produced steel, towers, and blades, K2 Wind is another great example of the positive economic impact the wind power industry has on the Province of Ontario and is a progressive step towards environmental sustainability,” said David Hickey, Vice President, Wind Power & Renewables, Siemens Canada Limited.

K2 Wind has created a Community Benefits Fund Agreement with the Township of ACW to deliver approximately $15 million in funding for community initiatives over the next 20 years. K2 Wind will also support local residents living near the facility through lease agreements and other benefits.

While in construction, K2 Wind was one of the largest infrastructure projects in Ontario. During its 18-month construction period, the project averaged over 300 workers on site. At peak construction, more than 500 workers were employed by the project.

The facility’s wind turbine components were manufactured in Ontario. A total of 700 turbine tower sections were produced in Windsor by CS Wind and the 420 blades were built in Tillsonburg by Siemens, directly supporting over 800 manufacturing jobs in Ontario.  K2 Wind expects to have approximately 20 full-time operations and maintenance employees, along with an additional 10 seasonal positions.

K2 Wind is comprised of 140 Siemens 2.3 MW wind turbines and operates under a 20-year PPA with the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO).