CHATHAM-KENT — Chatham-Kent looks poised to become the wind turbine capital of Ontario, as the municipality could be home to eight new wind turbine developments within the next few years.
With its mayor on board the wind energy train, Chatham-Kent has at least 10 wind turbine projects already up and running, and another eight projects have been submitted to the province for approval.
There are more than 2,000 turbines in Ontario, mostly in Western Ontario. Another 1,000 turbines are expected to be built within the next few years.
Developers are looking to add more projects and had until Sept. 1 to submit applications. The Independent Electricity System Operator, which plans for Ontario’s current and future energy needs, says there were 16 new project applications for Western Ontario. Many of the proposals do not mention how many turbines would be needed. Since an average turbine is 2.5 to 3 megawatts, Farmers Forum is estimating the number of turbines that may be involved. The 16 new projects include:
• 40-48 turbines (120-megawatt project) in Lorrain and South Lorrain.
• 33-40 turbines (100-megawatt project) in Chatham-Kent, Lakeshore and Leamington
• 33-40 turbines (100-megawatt project) in Brooke-Alvinston
• Up to 50 turbines (100-megawatt project) in Chatham-Kent
• Up to 50 turbines (100-megawatt project) in Warwick, Brooke-Alvinston and Adelaide Metcalfe
• 25-30 turbines (75-megawatt project) in Warwick, Brooke-Alvinston and Adelaide Metcalfe
• 23-28 turbines (70-megawatt project) in Malahide and Bayham
• 20-24 turbines (60-megawatt project) in Lakeshore
• 20-24 turbines (60-megawatt project) in Essex and Tecumseh
• 20-24 turbines (60-megawatt project) in Dutton Dunwich
• 16-20 turbines (50-megawatt project) in Chatham-Kent
• 10-15 turbines (38.4-megawatt project) in Chatham-Kent
• 8-10 turbines (26-megawatt project) in West Elgin and Chatham-Kent
• 6-9 turbines (15-megawatt project) in Chatham-Kent
• 3-7 turbines (14.4-megawatt project) in Chatham-Kent
• 3-4 turbines (9-megawatt project) in Chatham-Kent
