Northwestel completes photovoltaic array along Dempster highway

WHITEHORSE - With the support of Cold Climate Innovation and Government of Yukon’s Department of Energy, Mines and Resources, Northwestel has completed the photovoltaic array that will power the Engineer Creek microwave site in the Yukon for
the next twelve months.

Construction of the pilot project began in July as part of an energy feasibility study between Northwestel, Cold Climate Innovation of the Yukon Research Centre at Yukon College and the Energy Solutions Centre of the Government of Yukon’s Department of Energy, Mines and Resources. After the installation and significant testing, the solar cells are now self-reliant as the diesel engines were shut off and placed on reserve use for winter.

“The site has been working perfectly since we turned off the diesel engines,” said Northwestel Infrastructure Planning Manager Barry Sugden. “In the few weeks that the 15 kW array has been powering the site, there have been no issues.”

The site will run on solar energy for the next year with slight diesel power supplementation during the winter. During this time, data will be compiled and analyzed.

“Our goal for this project was to offset the high-cost of diesel with a low maintenance alternative energy and it is proving to be a success“, said Cold Climate Innovation Director, Stephen Mooney. Northwestel currently maintains 156 microwave stations in its operation area. Of these sites, 87 rely on independent sources of power and 37 are only accessible by helicopter. These sites currently rely on air-cooled diesel engines depending for their energy needs.

About Northwestel:
Northwestel Inc. services the largest operating area of any telecommunications company in the western hemisphere over the most remote and rugged terrain in Canada. It provides a complete range of voice, video and data solutions to residential and business customers in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Yukon, northern British Columbia and High Level, Alberta.

About Government of Yukon’s Energy Solutions Centre:
The Energy Solutions Centre is a branch of the Government of Yukon's Department of Energy, Mines and Resources. The mandate of the branch is to encourage improvements in energy efficiency and the adoption of more forms of renewable energy. To accomplish this mandate, the branch participates in the design of energy policies and delivers energy programs and projects that enhance the environmental, economic and social sustainability of the territory.

About Cold Climate Innovation:
Cold Climate Innovation is focused on the development, commercialization and export of sustainable cold climate technologies and related solutions for subarctic regions around the world. It is one of seven key programs at the Yukon Research Centre (YRC) at Yukon College. The other six programs are: Biodiversity Monitoring, Northern Climate ExChange, NSERC Industrial Research Chair for Colleges in Mine Life Cycle, Technology Innovation, Science Adventures, and Resources and Sustainable Development in the Arctic. Core funding for the Yukon Research Centre is provided by Yukon Education and Yukon Economic Development.

For more information, contact:

Eric Clement
External Communications Manager
867.455.4209
eclement@nwtel.ca

Tanis Davey
Communications and Marketing Coordinator
Yukon Research Centre
Yukon College
867.456.8625
tdavey@yukoncollege.yk.ca