CanWEA names Industry Leadership award winners

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA - The Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) recognized organizations and individuals working tirelessly to advance the wind-energy industry in Canada during its gala Awards Banquet as part of its 24th Annual Conference and Trade Show in Vancouver.

Awards were presented in three categories: Individual Leadership, Group Leadership and the R.J. Templin Award, for scientific, technical, engineering or policy work which has helped wind energy grow to new heights in Canada.

CanWEA award winners for 2008 are:

Individual Leadership Award

Wayne MacQuarrie, CEO of the PEI Energy Company, has been a critical contributor to wind development on Prince Edward Island and has helped make the province an example for others to follow. Through his efforts, PEI now has the highest wind penetration in Canada, with 72 MW representing 20 per cent of the province's electricity supply.

Group Leadership Award

Hydro Quebec is the recipient of this award for its work to ensure a promising future for wind energy in Quebec and Canada. Less than a year after announcing 2,000 MW Call For Power, the energy distributor already has plans to announce two new Calls For Power worth 250 MW each. This will boost Quebec's operating capacity to 4,000 MW by 2015.

R.J. Templin Award

The Alberta Electricity System Operator (AESO) has played an important leadership role in developing policy framework and undertaking initiatives that have facilitated the integration and movement towards much larger wind penetration levels in Alberta. Key actions include, developing of a Market and Operational Framework for Wind Integration in Alberta and undertaking a major Wind Energy Forecasting Pilot Project.

"We are proud to recognize this year's CanWEA award winners for their outstanding contributions to the wind-energy industry in Canada," said Robert Hornung, president of CanWEA. "It is thanks to their ongoing efforts and achievements that Canada is well positioned to achieve CanWEA's goal of having wind satisfy 20 per cent of the country's electricity needs by 2025."