MONTREAL, June 2, 2011 /PRNewswire/ - Sophie Brochu, President and CEO of Gaz Métro, and Patrick Lemaire, President and CEO of Boralex Inc., officially marked the start of construction on the first phase of the Seigneurie de Beaupré project (wind farms 2 and 3), which will have an installed capacity of 272 MW.

"The commencement of the work at the Seigneurie de Beaupré site is the result of the outstanding efforts of the people at two Quebec companies, Boralex and Gaz Métro," said Mr. Lemaire. "After six years spent designing and developing this project, we are proud to officially mark the start of construction at the Seigneurie site."

Ms. Brochu noted that "implementation of the Seigneurie project stems from exceptional collaboration between the Seminaire de Québec - which owns the land - and community and the Boralex/Gaz Métro-Valener consortium. We believe that our development model shows it is possible to develop energy projects that will contribute to the advancement of Quebec while having positive impacts in the regions where they are built."

The site will become the largest construction site in the Quebec City area. Work will continue into 2013, creating about 200 direct jobs in 2011 and 500 in 2012 and 2013.

More than $700 million will be invested in the first phase, with at least 60% of that amount being spent in Quebec.

Located on the private lands of the Seminaire de Québec, the first Seigneurie de Beaupré wind farm will consist of 126 turbines. The installed capacity will supply the annual electricity consumption of more than 50,000 households.

Most of the access roads will be built this year, along with 43 of the 126 wind-turbine foundations. The work will continue in 2012, as follows:

• Completion of the access roads and foundations
• Raising 91 towers, with heights ranging from 63 to 98 metres
• Finishing 70% of the underground work to install the gathering systems
• Building the electrical substation to connect to the Hydro-Québec grid

In the third year of construction, the towers will be completed and the nacelles and blades installed. Commissioning is scheduled for December 2013.

When completed, the total installed capacity of the Seigneurie de Beaupré wind farms will be 366 MW. The first phase of 272 MW will start up in late 2013; the second phase (wind farm 4) with 69 MW, will start operating in late 2014. Both are projects of the Boralex/Gaz Métro-Valener consortium. In addition, the 25 MW Côte-de-Beaupré wind farm built by Boralex in partnership with the Côte-de-Beaupré RCM will start up in 2015.

About Boralex
Boralex is a power producer whose core business involves developing and operating renewable energy power stations with a total installed capacity of 700 MW in Canada, the Northeastern United States and France. Boralex is also committed under power development projects, both independently and with European and Canadian partners, to add approximately 400 MW of power. With nearly 350 employees, Boralex is known for its diversified expertise and in-depth experience in three power generation segments - wind, hydroelectric and thermal - and will add a fourth segment to its energy portfolio with the upcoming commissioning of its first solar power station. Boralex's shares and convertible debentures are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the ticker symbols BLX and BLX.DB, respectively. More information is available at www.boralex.com or www.sedar.com.

About Gaz Métro and Valener
With over $3.6 billion in assets, Gaz Métro is Quebec's leading natural gas distributor. Its 10,000-kilometre network serves 300 municipalities. Gaz Métro has operated in this regulated industry since 1957 and is the trusted energy provider to more than 180,000 customers in Quebec and 45,000 customers in Vermont, who choose natural gas for its competitive price, efficiency, comfort and environmental benefits. Gaz Métro is also present in the electricity distribution market, with nearly 90,000 customers in Vermont, and is involved in natural gas transportation and storage, the development of projects such as wind power, natural gas as fuel for the transportation industry and biomethanation. Gaz Métro is committed to the satisfaction of its customers, its partners, its employees and the communities it serves. www.gazmetro.com

Valener owns an economic interest of approximately 29% in Gaz Métro Limited Partnership. Valener therefore has a stake in the energy industry and benefits from Gaz Métro's diversified profile, both in terms of geography and business segment. Valener also owns an indirect interest of 24.5% in the wind power projects jointly developed by Beaupré Éole General Partnership and Boralex Inc. on the private lands of Séminaire de Québec.

Source: PR Newswire

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/groundbreaking-ceremony-for-the-seigneurie-de-beaupre-wind-site-123040373.html

In spite of freezing rain…

On Saturday, in front of about 50 people who contributed to its installation, Cartier Énergie éolienne inaugurated its wind farm in Carleton.

The company formed by Innergex and Transcanada wind invested 170 million dollars to erect its third park which consist of 73 wind turbines with a maximum power of 109 megawatts.

Saturday, 93 towers were producing. The park was generating 13 megawatts of wind energy. Over the last few days the installations were struck with freezing rain.

Gilles Lefrançois, the president of Cartier Énergie éolienne, who was present at the ceremony, underlined the exceptional work done by the park’s general contractor Blattner-Pomerleau.

“I think it’s impossible for us not to mention the contractor Blattner-Pomerleau, which faced great challenges (…) they had to work and build roads during a winter where incredible amounts of snow fell. Amounts we see about every 50 years and maybe even 100 years.  Therefore they, as well as their contractors faced incredible challenges and succeeded…”

Nathalie Normandeau the deputy-minister was also present at the inauguration and wished that with its new experience with wind farms, Gaspésie would become a reference in Quebec, Canada and North America.

“If a few years, when we’ll speak of wind energy in Quebec, I hope that all eyes are turned towards people in Gaspésie and the hard work and investment that was put towards developing a clean, renewable and green energy which will benefit future generations.”

According to Cartier Énergie Éolienne, during the construction of the farm 86% of workers were from the Gaspésie region or Matane. 71% of these workers lived in Avignon or Bonaventure.

CIEU - FM