Company Overview

The Atlantic Wind Test Site Inc. (AWTS) is Canada's facility for the testing and development of wind energy technology. Located at North Cape, the northernmost tip of Prince Edward Island, the facility has been a key participant in the Canadian wind energy program since 1980. Jointly funded by Natural Resources Canada and the Province of Prince Edward Island, AWTS has evolved to meet the changing needs of the national wind energy program. Currently, projects are selected with emphasis is on economic viability, and most of today's projects concern wind energy applications that have near term commercial potential.

AWTS' mandate includes:

testing of commercial and developmental wind energy equipment and systems to determine performance, operational characteristics and reliability;

collaborative projects, including demonstrations, especially for Arctic locations;

the development and testing of wind resource monitoring equipment and methodology;

participation in the development of national and international standards for performance testing, safety and electrical interconnections;

development of wind-diesel technology through test programs, field demonstrations and collaboration with other research groups;

providing wind energy expertise to development organizations as well as to governments and industry providing information on wind energy technology to the public.

SERVICES AND CAPABILITIES

AWTS has, for the past several years, emphasized increased collaborative work with industrial and research partners. This direction will continue for the future since it has been an effective method of combining the strengths of the AWTS organization with the strengths of other groups. To such groups AWTS provides a facility that is staffed year round by fully qualified technical personnel who are capable of carrying out a wide range of technical functions.

AWTS offers a range of services to a variety of clients:

Wind technology design evaluation and primary research and development Monitoring and testing of prototypes and commercially available wind turbines Control systems development, particularly for systems which integrate wind turbines with other sources Wind resource assessment and remote monitoring Project planning and management Engineering consulting

AWTS offers unbiased and confidential testing and developmental work.

CURRENT ACTIVITIES AWTS has a range of projects that are currently active

TESTING PROGRAMS A variety of wind turbines have been tested over the years at AWTS. Currently there are wind turbines at AWTS involved in a range of testing and development programs.

R&D ACTIVITIES

In addition to testing wind turbines, AWTS is engaged in an expanding program of collaborative R&D projects including:

Wind-Diesel Systems The integration of fuel-saving wind turbines with diesel generating sets is a significant innovation for remote community electrical systems. AWTS has developed Canada's only wind-diesel test bed into a world class facility. This facility has allowed the AWTS to test and to develop different wind-diesel configurations and control systems to achieve reliable and smooth operation.

AWTS is also developing an advanced Wind-Diesel Integrated Control System (WDICS) which will soon be commercially available.

Innovative Wind Technology Innovative technology is also explored at AWTS. One current project includes the Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT). This design, pioneered in Canada over twenty years ago, has many key advantages, such as easy access at ground level for maintenance and no requirement for a yawing system to align the wind turbine with the wind direction. A 'dynamically soft' design, using non-rigid supports, has been computer modeled and fabricated at AWTS and is now ready for testing.

Collaborative Research AWTS recognizes the need for collaboration to speed the development of the technology. AWTS has collaborated with a number of utility, industry and academic partners in a variety of research projects.

For instance, AWTS is presently collaborating with the University of New Brunswick, several other regional universities and the Canadian Foundation for Innovation (CFI) to design and construct a new research and development facility to enhance research into renewable energy conversion and storage technologies. This facility will be located at AWTS but will be used by interested research personnel from university and other research organizations.

AWTS has also collaborated with a New Brunswick firm to assist in the design and testing of three innovative new inverters, ranging in size from 10 kW to 100 kW, to efficiently convert variable wind and solar power to stable utility grade electric power.

AWTS is a knowledge-based organization designed to help find Canadians solutions to the energy-environment issue over the next decade.

AWTS is committed to meet to the challenge of developing sustainable and economic renewable energy technologies.

Company Information

Additional Details

Legal Name: Atlantic Wind Test Site Inc.

Number of Employees: 5

Contacts

Services

• Wind Power - Testing Services

NAICS Categories

• 541330 Engineering Services
• 541380 Testing Laboratories

Additional Information