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Nunavut Winds
Canadian Geographic, November/December 2003

The territory of Nunavut, concerned about shipping, storing and burning diesel fuel in the fragile northern environment, wants to harness the Arctic winds to generate electricity—if it can find a turbine that is up to the task. Officials from Qulliq Energy, a Nunavut crown corporation, hope to learn from their costly experiment with generators installed at Kugluktuk in 1996, where a severe storm eventually blew one turbine right off its tower and repairs in the remote locations proved difficult.

A turbine operating in the slightly less remote community of Rankin Inlet since November 2000 has functioned well, providing electricity to residents, and Qulliq Energy is betting that more durable equipment and better maintenance will pay off. It can also draw on the experience of Cambridge Bay, where for six years Dutch Industries Ltd. Maintained a turbine.

Last year, Qulliq issued a request for proposals, and it is now assessing five companies' plans for design and construction.

Territory politicians are keen to reduce Nunavut's massive dependence on diesel, which in 2001 gobbled up $121 million, nearly 18 percent of the annual budget.

Says Qulliq's Lee Douglas, "Another of the reasons Nunavut is so interested in looking at alternative sources of energy is because the Arctic climate is the most susceptible to climate change."

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