Just after Thanksgiving, specialists from countries including Canada, Norway, and Australia laid approximately 8,000 metres of submarine electrical cable to connect Ontario’s Wolfe Island Wind Farm Project to the mainland.
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Just after Thanksgiving, specialists from countries including Canada, Norway, and Australia laid approximately 8,000 metres of submarine electrical cable to connect Ontario’s Wolfe Island Wind Farm Project to the mainland.
The installation of the cable, believed to be the world’s first designed to carry 230 kilovolts under water, is a significant step in the activation of 86 wind turbines on the island, located directly opposite the City of Kingston at the entrance to the St. Lawrence River.
The $450-million turbine project began construction in the summer, and is being developed by the Canadian Renewable Energy Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Canadian Hydro Developers, Inc.
Supplies are being transported to island via barge, with construction materials shipped from Kingston, and turbine parts shipped from Ogdensburg, New York, where they arrived from Denmark.
“The barges are our lifeline, bringing workers, cement and rebar to the island every day,” says Mike Jablonicky, Site Supervisor for the project.
A temporary batch plant has been constructed on the island to supply ready-mixed concrete to pour the huge bases required to anchor the turbines. Fresh water is drawn from Lake Ontario to complete the mix.
When complete, each unit will stand 125 metres tall, including the length of the extended blades.
Construction of the wind-driven units is being done in phases, with bases constructed at a measured pace ahead of turbines, and access roads constructed ahead of bases.
“We’ve completed 19 bases and have just finished installing the first turbine,” says Jablonicky.
The St. Lawrence could freeze by Christmas, but the project will be well supplied by that time to continue full-scale construction throughout the winter, including completion of the facility’s electrical sub-station.
“We’ll continue to erect turbines over the coming months and we expect to generate our first wind power by late winter, or as soon as Mother Nature allows,” says Jablonicky.
When the project is completed, it will have the capacity to deliver 197.8 megawatts of electricity to the mainland.
– RCD Digital Media
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