Mapleton wind turbine project loses FIT contract
A proposed single-turbine wind farm near here is on hold after the proponent’s Feed in Tariff (FIT) contract was cancelled by the Ontario Independent Electrical System Operator (IESO).
The Roubos Wind Farm project was included on a list of 15 terminated FIT contracts for solar and wind projects recently posted on the IESO website. The contracts were issued by the Ontario Power Authority (OPA), which was merged with the IESO under the latter name as of Jan. 1.
The Roubos proposal was for a single-turbine, 500 kilowatt project located in Mapleton Township, south of Teviotdale and just east of the North Perth boundary.
Local contractor Willem Roubos was the proponent and the project documentation was prepared by M.K. Ince and Associates.
IESO spokesperson Alexandra Campbell said agency officials could not comment on reasons for the termination.
“We’re not allowed to talk about the specific reasons for individual projects. I can confirm that the contract was terminated,” she told the Wellington Advertiser.
Thomas Bernacki of M.K. Ince referred questions on the contract termination to Roubos.
“I didn’t meet a deadline,” Roubos told the Wellington Advertiser in a telephone interview. “There was some miscommunication with the engineer and the Ontario Power Authority.”
The project was granted approval by the Ministry of Environment on April 30, 2014.
Roubos said the approval date didn’t give him time to have the project commercially operational by Oct. 31, 2014, the required 18 months after the FIT contract was granted by the OPA.
“I was really disappointed that the environmental approval took way too long. When we put the application in they didn’t even look at it for 12 months,” said Roubos.
He added he was ready to install the turbine about two weeks after the deadline date, and that his engineers were given the impression the minor delay wouldn’t be an issue.
“There’s now some lawyers involved,” said Roubos, who added he still hopes to eventually get the project operating and hooked to the grid. “It’s gonna take a little bit, but some people are working on it.”
