Castle River

With 60 turbines, the Castle River facility has a total capacity of 44 megawatts. Seven additional turbines producing 3.78 megawatts are located nearby. This facility started with a single turbine that began operation in November 1997. Subsequent units were installed between June 2000 and July 2001. Castle River wind facility is wholly owned by TransAlta.

The Green Energy® produced at Castle River is used to supply customers who are committed to making a difference through their electricity purchase.

The 60 turbines annually produce 125,000 megawatt hours of electricity, which is enough to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 87,500 tonnes.

At a Glance

• Location: Near Pincher Creek, Alberta, southwest of Pincher Creek airport
• Technology: 1 Vestas V44 turbine (600 kW, 40 m tower); 59 Vestas V47 turbines (660 kW, 50 m tower)

Turbine Facts

• The 50 m tower is made up of rolled steel and comes in two pieces, weighing 24,000 kg
• Each blade is 23 m long; the rotor is 8,500 kg and is made up of three blades
• The nacelle containing the generator and gearbox is about the size of a small motor home and weighs 20,000 kg
• The foundation is 8.5 m deep and 5 m across. 102 tension type bolts run the full length of the foundation

Note: TransAlta gratefully acknowledges Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) for its support for this project through the eco Energy for Renewable Power (eERP) program.