"A lot of new companies are struggling right now in an effort to get their foot in the door, but the fact that we were here years before Ontario’s FIT program was introduced has positioned us at the leading edge of the competition to exploit this tremendous opportunity,” Mr. Trahan stated. “Our real competitive advantage, though, and one that we expect will ensure the company’s future success for years to come, lies in the fact that our systems offer up to 30% higher efficiency than industry norms”.
Atlantic Wind and Solar Inc. points out that since the Ontario Power Authority launched the Province's lucrative new FIT program last October, it and other green power/renewable energy companies have focused on the enormous commercial rooftop solar energy opportunities across Ontario, seen as the low hanging fruit in the Province’s Renewable Energy build out.
Power generated by these projects will be sold directly into the grid through Power Purchase Agreements (PPA) contracted to the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) for 20 years, at an average price of 71.3 cents per kilowatt hour, with guarantees for expeditious connection to the grid. Clearly, the introduction of FIT has put Ontario on the lightning fast track of Renewable Energy development while also paving the way for AWSL, given its superior technology, to rapidly grow market share in this emerging 21st Century growth industry.
Superior technology the key
AWSL believes its proprietary technology gives it a significant advantage in marketing its renewable energy systems: An advanced Converter/Inverter Technology (CIT), which is specifically designed to convert direct current (DC) energy from the photovoltaic panels into usable alternating current.
(AC) electricity for the Ontario utility grid provides up to 30 percent more clean, renewable electricity per year compared to conventional inverter technology. This advanced technology, while slightly more expensive than current inverter technology, has less of a "drop-off" rate (efficiency loss), providing a significantly higher return on investment for the company's systems. This advanced technology is also designed to start collecting energy produced in much reduced sunlight conditions, and therefore will turn on earlier at dawn and shut off later at dusk than preceding CIT’s, while harvesting more energy output during a 24 hour cycle.
AWSL… Quick to capture the benefits
Trahan noted that the company began to focus on solar energy opportunities in Ontario last year when the province signalled its long-term energy strategy with the cancellation of two nuclear energy projects deemed too costly to build and maintain. “It became readily apparent that Renewable Energy was about to take centre stage in Ontario’s long term energy future!”
AWSL was quick to plan and launch a focused campaign to market its high efficiency solar energy rooftop systems across Ontario. The company reports that this marketing campaign has met with gratifying success, having achieved numerous milestones in quick succession including a partnership with The Remington Group Inc., one of the leading commercial and residential real estate developers in Ontario, for the installation of up to $15 million of the company's solar energy parks on Remington-owned rooftop facilities.
Through its 47.5%-owned Canadian affiliate Hybridyne Power Systems Canada Inc. (HPSC), AWSL is also in the process of installing a turnkey 2000 Kw peak capacity photovoltaic energy park with a projected capex of approximately $16.8 million in Brownsville, about 80 kilometers east of Toronto on the outskirts of Newcastle, Ontario. When the Brownsville project is completed later this year, the 10-acre solar energy park, with more than 90% Canadian and 50% Ontario content, will deliver enough clean energy to power more than 360 gas-heated homes each year.
Looking ahead
In addition to aggressively marketing its systems across Ontario in the foreseeable future, the company also plans to market its high-efficiency CIT technology into European markets, where customers pay more for energy compared to North Americans, and generally get their renewable energy from installations that are 10+ years old and significantly less efficient than today's technology.
Editor’s Note: This article was written by David Coates, a writer and PR consultant following the renewable energy sector in Ontario.
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