Énergir and Boralex join forces to produce wind energy

Did you know that Énergir, in partnership with the energy company Boralex, owns one of the largest wind farms in Canada and sells its electricity to Hydro-Québec? Surprising, isn’t it?

Located some 60 km northeast of Quebec City, the Seigneurie de Beaupré wind farms provide clean, renewable energy to many Québec households. Developed by Énergir and Boralex between 2013 and 2014 as part of an agreement with Hydro-Québec, Parks 2, 3 and 4 have 154 wind turbines that produce a total of 340 megawatts (MW). That’s enough electricity to supply more than 65,000 homes for a year!

An exceptional site

Why was Seigneurie of Beaupré chosen for this project? Because the site offers particularly favourable conditions for wind farms:

• The quality of the “wind resource,” or wind potential, is excellent, with an average wind speed of 30 km/h. For reference, a wind turbine begins to turn when the wind speed hits 12 km/h.

• The site is located near a 315 kV high-voltage electric power transmission line.

• There are no permanent residents in Seigneurie de Beaupré.

Diversifying for better decarbonization

This project is the result of a partnership between Énergir and Boralex, and demonstrates that energy diversification and complementarity are concrete solutions to decarbonize the economy and help reach Québec’s 2030 greenhouse gas emissions reduction target of 37.5 percent below 1990 levels.

An expansion is on the horizon

To further their work in this area, Énergir and Boralex announced a major expansion of the Seigneurie de Beaupré wind farms in partnership with Hydro-Québec. This three-phase project will add 1,200 MW of production capacity, which is three times the current level. In other words, these new facilities are expected to provide nearly 200,000 additional homes with renewable electricity. With Hydro-Québec forecasting that our electricity consumption will increase by 12 percent by 2029, this is excellent news for Québec and for the environment!