Wind farm briefly powers entire city
As of midnight December 23, three of the four machines, which have just gone online, were synchronized with the electricity grid and producing power, Terry Murphy said.
The city's entire electricity needs were satisfied by wind energy for six hours overnight, Murphy said — an achievement that exceeds the city's expectations for the turbines.
He said the city will be happy if it gets a third of its electricity annually from wind, on average. Winter, with its fierce air currents, is the best time of year to create aeolian energy.
Construction began on the four 80-metre-high turbines over the summer in the city's St. Eleanors neighbourhood. Costing $30 million total, they are designed to generate 12 megawatts of power.
Some local residents ardently opposed the wind farm, saying it would cut into their property values, create noise and pose possible health risks.
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Alberta breaks summer electricity record, still far short of capacity
CALGARY - Consumer use hit 10,638 MW, blowing past a previous high of 10,520 MW set on July 9, 2015, said the Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO).
“We hit a new summer peak and it’s likely we’ll hit higher peaks as the week progresses,” said AESO spokeswoman Tara De Weerd.
“We continue to have ample supply, our generators are very confident there aren’t any issues.”
That new peak was set at 4 p.m. but De Weerd said it was likely to be exceeded later in the day.
Heightened air conditioner use is normally a major driver of such peak electricity consumption, said De Weerd.
She…
