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Any visitor will quickly realise that there is no shortage of wind in Nova Scotia. Harnessing this vast resource is an important priority for the province, not just to generate power, but also to fuel the growth of new industries.
EverWind Fuels is now moving forward with one of the largest schemes for onshore wind in Nova Scotia. In March, the Halifax-headquartered company announced a $175mn investment from US asset management giant Nuveen to help fund 650MW of new wind capacity across several sites in the province.
“We’re planning to start construction this year,” says Trent Vichie, EverWind’s CEO.
Initially, the electricity generated will be used to supply the local grid. But the company’s ultimate plan is to use wind power in the electrolysis process to produce green ammonia. The company has secured a location at an existing fuels storage facility in Point Tupper on Nova Scotia’s Cape Breton Island, which it views as an ideal site for producing and exporting green ammonia.
Vichie says the most likely offtakers would be from Europe, particularly Germany. While the business case for green ammonia has sometimes been questioned amid growing pains in the nascent market, he points out that the fuel can help mitigate dependence on fossil fuel alternatives from unstable regions. “Current world events really highlight the benefits of having diversity of different fuel sources,” says Vichie.
The reason he believes EverWind can succeed where many others have failed with its project in Nova Scotia is simple: “Pricing competitiveness.”
“We have the largest deep-water port on the east coast of North America. We have a port and loading facility that would cost $400mn to build, if you’re building it from scratch,” says Vichie. “It’s a previously developed site, and that makes all the difference in the world to your economics.”
Vichie adds that the locality boasts “a fantastic wind resource”, with average wind speeds of around seven metres per second in Cape Breton, alongside an abundance of available land.
Advertisement The fact that Nova Scotia sees highly seasonal power demand also provides an opportunity to concentrate green ammonia production in the summer months, when a surplus of power is typical, he says.
The scheme is notable for its ownership structure. A First Nation consortium holds a 51 per cent stake in the first phase wind project, an arrangement that Vichie describes as promoting “economic reconciliation”.
Meanwhile, the Nova Scotia government has “been really supportive”, he says. “There’s a very strong will to get these businesses off the ground.”
EverWind estimates that its wind power investments will create 500 jobs during construction and another 100 during operations. Vichie emphasises that the project can help revitalise a less populated area of the province. “There’s a lot of Nova Scotians who’ve been working in places like Alberta, so you’ve actually got a very strong pool of talent,” he adds. “And a lot of these people are looking to be closer to home.”
