CANADA (From news reports) -- J.D. Irving has secured an agreement to sell power from the large wind farm it's building in western New Brunswick to N.B. Power.
The Bright Mountain wind project, first announced by JDI in the spring of 2024, got regulatory approval from the province last winter.
In a news release, N.B. Power announced that an agreement had been signed to purchase 200 megawatts of energy from the project.
"We are pleased to see such a strong interest to add renewables to our grid and to proceed with this shovel ready project," said N.B. Power Lori Clark in the release.
"With our province facing an energy shortfall as early as 2028, this agreement and strategic partnership will help us integrate additional renewable power into our systems at an expedited rate, which is so necessary to help us meet the growing energy needs of New Brunswickers both cost-effectively and efficiently."
No details or terms of the agreement have been provided.
Construction activities have already begun at the site, which is JDI's first venture into the wind business.
The latest construction update posted on JDI's website for the project, from October, said "exploratory activity with light construction activity" would be going on at the site.
An earlier update said timber harvesting and work at the pad sites for the turbines took place from June to September.
JDI got approval last November for the first phase of its $550 million Brighton Mountain wind farm project near Juniper in Carleton County. The website says this phase is expected to be completed in 2027.
Company documents available on the project website show the first phase will have up to 34 turbines on the northern half of the project property with a capacity of up to 200 megawatts.
The second phase, which would include up to 24 turbines with a capacity of up to about 150 megawatts, would need its own approval.
At a public meeting in Juniper in the summer of 2024, several local residents spoke out against the project, citing environmental concerns and what they called a lack of communication from the company.
