Calgary-based renewable energy producer Canadian Hydro Developers Inc. said Monday it has acquired the rights to an Ontario wind energy project that could become the world’s largest offshore wind farm.
Terms of the deal with Utah-based wind project developer Wasatch Wind Inc. were not disclosed.
"We expect the offshore wind prospect to give Canadian Hydro years of strong, double-digit growth and to provide our shareholders with attractive returns," Kent Brown, chief executive with Canadian Hydro, said in a release.
Canadian Hydro also has not specified the exact location of the site, but said it was about five to 30 kilometres offshore in one of the great lakes bordering Ontario.
The company expects the site to ultimately generate some 4,400 megawatts, enough to power more than 2 million homes.
However, Canadian Hydro will take its time with the project as the first 400 to 500 MW stage is planned to come online in the fourth quarter of 2014.
There are no estimates on when the project will be complete.
Canadian Hydro already operates 21 water, wind and biomass renewable energy generation facilities across Canada, producing 694 MW of capacity.
This deal comes after reports over the weekend that Korean company Samsung Corp. is looking into building a 200-turbine wind farm on the north shore of Lake Erie.
The office of George Smitherman, minister of energy and infrastructure, released a statement late Saturday night confirming negotiations with Samsung have been ongoing for months.
"Efforts are progressing well toward the signing of a historic framework agreement," the statement said.
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