Halkirk Wind Project Alberta s largest wind-power facility enters commercial operations. Completed on time and under budget

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1 Halkirk Wind Project Alberta s largest wind-power facility enters commercial operations Completed on time and under budget

2 A worker intricately assembles steel rebar for a turbine s spread footing foundation, which requires 400 m 2 of concrete per foundation. In all 33,200 m 2 of concrete was used for the Project s 83 turbines. The concrete was produced at an on-site batch plant and trucked to each turbine site by a local contractor. 2

3 Trucks with specialized trailers carrying the turbine s 44-metre long blades wait to leave the Project s staging area in Hardisty, Alberta. Some of the turbine s components, including its 249 blades were manufactured in Colorado and transported by rail to Wilson Siding near Lethbridge in southern Alberta. The turbine s nacelles and hubs were shipped from Europe and stored at the port of Thunder Bay before travelling by rail almost 2,000 kilometres to Hardisty. 3

4 Each turbine consists of nine separate pieces (one nacelle, one hub, three blades and four tower sections). A 49-tonne tower base is pre-installed in this picture before a larger 600- tonne crane installs the lower-mid, upper-mid and top section of the tower, nacelle, hub and three blades. The four tower sections once assembled together measure 80-metres in height. 4

5 Looking like the nose of an airplane a worker atop a 70 tonne nacelle, the size of a school bus prepares for the turbine s three 44-metre long blades to be skillfully hoisted and feathered into the hub. The nacelle is the main operations centre of the turbine and contains the components that create electrical energy, including a generator, gearbox, cooling system, electronics and transformer. 5

6 Crane contractor Eagle West is a leading wind turbine installer in Canada. Here, a 600- tonne crane hoists a 44-metre blade 80 metres high and delicately feathers it into a hub. Each of the 6.5-tonne hollow blades is made of a carbon-reinforced fiberglass. 6

7 Many of the 83 turbines are accessed by public roads in the County of Paintearth. Capital Power was responsible for maintaining roads throughout construction and ensuring that the roads were left in as good or better condition than prior to construction. 7

8 Wind turbines from Capital Power s Halkirk Wind Project dot the prairie skyline along with a grain elevator, a remnant of the west s past. The Village of Halkirk celebrated its centennial this year, having been founded in 1912 and today is home to fewer than 150 people. It is located about 122 kilometres east of Red Deer in the County of Paintearth. 8

9 The primary industry in the Halkirk area is agriculture. Once installed, a turbine has a very small footprint with limited impact to agriculture, including cattle grazing. The majority of landowners who have turbines or access roads on their property have been working the land for four generations. 9

10 After a wetter than normal spring and a number of turbine assembly days winded out due to high winds, night lifts were done to ensure the Project stayed on track for a Q commissioning. The high-lift crane cannot safely operate if wind speeds exceed 35 kilometers per hour. 10

11 In mid-september, Capital Power hosted a community barbecue, offered tours of the renewable energy project and invited residents to sign their name to one of the Project s 249 turbine blades. The decorated blade has been placed on turbine 52 located in the south-west quadrant of the project and east of Hwy 855. About 1,700 people attended the unique event. 11

12 Students from all five County of Paintearth schools participated in the blade signing event. Each of the schools assembled for a commemorative photo in front of the blade, which was on display at the Halkirk Rodeo Grounds. The students were thrilled to be a part of history as they signed the 44-metre long blade, which is the approximate length of four 48passenger school buses. 12

13 Halkirk has a unique wind regime in the Alberta marketplace because of its geographical diversity being located far from wind resources in southern Alberta. The strong, consistent and above-average wind ratings in the area of east-central Alberta have a strong capacity factor and are ideal for harvesting wind energy. 13

14 The Halkirk Wind Project is Capital Power s first major wind project in Alberta. Halkirk is Alberta s single largest wind project developed to date with the ability to supply energy to about 50,000 homes (based on the average household energy use of 1,000 kwh/month). 14

15 Halkirk is the first project in Alberta to develop a unique market opportunity in California. While the power will be sold into the Alberta spot market, the Project is backed by a 20-year agreement with Pacific Gas & Electric for the sale of the environmental attributes, or Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs), that come with generating power from a renewable resource like wind. 15

16 The turbines sit atop 80-metre towers and have 44-metre blades, for a total height of 124 metres, the height of a 37 storey building. In comparison, Capital Power s head office in Edmonton at EPCOR Tower is 146 metres tall. Halkirk consists of 83 turbines, which each produce 1.8 MW of power. The Vestas V-90 model was used on 35 of the 79 turbines at Quality Wind, which entered commercial operations in November. This technology will also be used at our Port Dover & Nanticoke Wind Project under construction in Ontario. 16

17 The 150-MW wind power facility is spread out on approximately 15,000 acres (10,000 ha) of private land in east-central Alberta 40 kilometres east of the Town of Stettler within Paintearth County. Each turbine actually has a very small footprint, including its road about one acre is required per turbine. 17

18 Capital Power owns more than 3,400 megawatts of power generation capacity at 15 facilities across North America. An additional 195 megawatts of owned wind generation capacity is under construction or in advanced development in Ontario. 18

19 Capital Power constructed a new office space and purchased an existing workshop in the Village of Halkirk. The office space houses the permanent employees in operations, maintenance and administration for the Halkirk Wind Project. 19

20 A hazy band of beautiful white light known as the Milky Way arcs across the night sky on September 21, 2012 at the Halkirk Wind Project. 20

21 The community and economic benefits from the wind-power facility include increased tax revenue for the Village of Halkirk and Paintearth County as well as annual lease payments to landowners, construction jobs and economic offshoots for local businesses. Capital Power is committed to supporting the quality of life in the community throughout the life of the Project by supporting local initiatives including Bullarama, Halkirk Centennial and the Coronation 4-H Show & Sale. 21

22 The sun slowly fades on the horizon giving way to a spectacular fall night sky on September 21, 2012 at Capital Power s 150 MW Halkirk Wind Project located in east-central Alberta. 22