Senvion (Suzlon) completes first phase of 350 MW wind farm in Canada

Senvion SE, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Suzlon Group, the world’s fifth-largest manufacturer of wind turbines, has just completed commissioning of  phase one of  the wind project Rivière-du-Moulin.

So far, 75 of 175 Senvion MM82 and MM92 type wind turbines in a special cold climate version (CCV) have been installed and commissioned.

 

 

Completion of phase two, consisting of 100 additional turbines, is set for end of 2015.  By now, Senvion has a footprint of almost 800 megawatts (MW) in Quebec that the company’s local team installed and commissioned since 2010.

The wind project, located in the Regional County Municipalities (RCM) of Charlevoix and Fjord du Saguenay, will be the largest wind energy facility in Canada signed under a single Power Purchase Agreement. With 350 MW it is also one of the two biggest onshore contracts in the history of Senvion. The wind farm, consisting of a total of 152 Senvion MM92 and 23 Senvion MM82 type turbines CCV, is expected to produce enough electricity to supply about 106 000 households with clean energy. Towers, blades and converters are sourced locally from Quebec.

At the occasion, Andreas Nauen, CEO of Senvion SE, commented: “With the completion of Rivière-du-Moulin, Senvion has an impressive footprint in Quebec which will continue to grow.”

Despite the considerable size of the project and the number of turbines, grid connection has been right on schedule. Up to 585 people in total have been working to achieve that goal, including about 20 Senvion commissioners from Canada, the US and Germany at peak times.

Helmut Herold, CEO North America at Senvion Canada Inc., said:  “I am very proud to see phase one of Rivière-du-Moulin reaching commercial operation. Thanks to the great team effort of all partners and our dedicated and very experienced Senvion team, installation and commissioning of the wind farm went smoothly and we finished perfectly on schedule.”