The Ripley Wind Power Project will include construction of 38 wind turbines east of Lake Huron in Huron-Kinloss Township. The project is expected to have the capacity to generate enough zero-emission electricity to power 22,000 homes and offset approximately 66,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually. Project cost is estimated at approximately $165 million.

“Expanding Suncor’s wind energy program into Ontario is a key step in our journey to becoming a sustainable energy company,” said Dave Byler, Suncor’s executive vice president, natural gas and renewable energy. “We are pleased to be doing our part to provide clean energy to Ontario consumers and we welcome the steps being taken at both levels of government to encourage investment in renewable energy.”

The project is the result of the Ontario government’s request for proposals to supply approximately 1,000 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy. The Ontario government aims to produce 10 per cent of the province’s electricity from renewable sources by 2010. The Ripley wind farm was one of nine renewable energy projects selected in this most recent round of proposals.

“We are excited by the opportunity to partner again with Suncor on this project that will help meet the commitment to renewable energy by the Ontario government,” said Alberto de Miguel, ACCIONA Energia’s executive director of development.

Next steps for the project include completing the environmental assessment in early 2006. Suncor and ACCIONA Energia will then seek regulatory approvals and submit an application for funding from the Canadian government’s Wind Power Production Incentive (WPPI) program, which supports wind power development in Canada. Pending regulatory approvals, construction is expected to start in fall 2006 with project commissioning in fall 2007.

Suncor and ACCIONA Energia are equal partners in the Ripley Wind Power Project. They also jointly own and operate, along with Enbridge Inc., the 30-megawatt Magrath Wind Power Project and are building the 30-megawatt Chin Chute Wind Power Project, both in southern Alberta. Suncor and Enbridge also own and operate the 11.2-megawatt SunBridge Wind Power Project near Gull Lake, Saskatchewan.

Suncor, which operates a Sarnia-based refinery and a network of Sunoco retail stations, is also supporting renewable energy development in Ontario by building a $120-million ethanol plant in the Sarnia-Lambton region. The plant, which is due to be commissioned next year, is expected produce approximately 200 million litres of ethanol annually. Since 1996, Suncor has been blending ethanol into its Sunoco gasolines. Ethanol-blended gasolines help reduce carbon monoxide emissions by up to 30 per cent.