Monday, February 25, 2008

The push for windfalls from wind power (SWX.TO)

From the Globe and Mail:
The challenge: To generate renewable energy. The plan: Get primary wind farm sites up and running. The payoff: Cash in on the need for renewable energy

When Mike Magnus talks about the future, you can almost see the windmills turning in his mind. He has big plans for Shear Wind Inc., the Bedford, N.S.-based renewable-energy company he founded in 2005.

According to the Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA), a not-for-profit group that represents more than 300 industry members, wind energy generation is increasing by an average of 25 to 30 per cent each year. Since 1994, it has jumped from 4,800 megawatts to more than 94,000 globally, and from a little more than 100 MW to more than 1,800 in Canada.

"How many industries in Canada can talk to those types of growth rates?" asks Mr. Magnus, a former Clearwater Seafoods executive, who conceived the idea for Shear Wind while gazing at the many windmills in Europe....MORE