A $61-million wind farm slated to be up and running in Amherst early next year will have about 50 employees.
"People are actually already on the site working," Jeff Jenner, president and CEO of Sprott Power Corp. of Toronto, said in an interview Wednesday after Premier Darrell Dexter helped break ground for the wind farm.
Sprott, which owns wind farms in Cape Breton, and Firelight Infrastructure Partners, also of Toronto, are leading the project. Suzlon Wind Energy Corp., an energy multinational, is also involved and has hired DSTN Trenton to manufacture the steel towers for the wind turbines.
"I think the reason we’re willing to invest the $61 million here is because your government has a great energy platform and it will attract investors, such as Sprott and others," Jenner said.
"Nova Scotia is at least the only provincial jurisdiction where its commitment to a renewable portfolio standard has what I would call teeth, in that it’s law and people must abide by it, and as a result, people are helping companies like us make it happen."
The project will feature 15 wind turbines with a capacity of 31.5 megawatts, enough energy to power 10,000 homes.
The Dexter government says the wind farm will not only boost the economy in the Amherst area but will help the province reach its renewable electricity targets. The province has set a goal of getting 25 per cent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2015 and 40 per cent by 2020.
Amherst Mayor Robert Small couldn’t be reached for comment Wednesday.
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