It appears the Drumheller Institution is not the only penitentiary in Canada that has experienced trouble with its wind power projects.
The Mail reported in its October 3, 2012 edition, the wind power generator, which cost nearly $1.4 million, was not operating.
Mayor Terry Yemen reported that since then it has been operational.
A CBC report from New Brunswick says a turbine installed at Dorchester has also stalled, and there has been an additional $60,000 spent on repairs.
It appears the generating units are similar, both rated to produce 600 Kw/h. The Drumheller unit was manufactured by Fuhrlaender in Germany. Issues with the Drumheller turbine were related to the batteries and inverter. To further complicate matters, Lorax, the US contractor that won the bidding process, dissolved before the project was commissioned.
The turbine in Drumheller was purchased in 2008 as part of the pilot project to help save money, with potentially 20 per cent of the institution’s energy needs being met by the wind.
For Mayor Terry Yemen, what upsets him is the lack of accountability for taxpayers’ dollars.
