Juhl Wind, a bold and established leader in developing community based wind power projects in the US/Canada, reported today signing of a letter of intent with Montana-based sustainable/smart grid-ready energy storage solutions developer Zinc Air, Inc., for the installation of an advanced 1MW storage system at the JUHL’s Woodstock Hills wind farm.
This powerful new storage system will be put to work at the Woodstock Hills wind farm near the Company’s HQ in Woodstock, Minnesota, where projections of the Zinc Air system’s optimal balance of environmental soundness and advanced technology will be thoroughly evaluated. The Zinc Air battery chemistry lowers cost by using locally abundant non-hazardous materials, resulting in a safer, simpler and more efficient solution.
Chairman and CEO of JUHL, Dan Juhl, cited the core, proprietary Zinc Redox flow battery technology utilized in the new storage system, for which the Zinc Air is widely known, as being a triumph of green engineering. The solution is also extremely competitive, engineered from the start to realize rapid payback periods, enabling the wind farm to store/shift wind power for maximized performance.
The integration of this storage solution with JUHL’s infrastructure at Woodstock Hill, which the Company acquired just this spring, achieves a target set at the time of acquisition for marrying the farm to what is now JUHL’s first utility-scale, storage system. A model that can be propagated via future projects and through the Company’s wind farmer partners.
This combined architecture is smart grid-ready and extremely flexible, making it perfect for utility operators looking to roll out wind power resource generators and dovetails nicely with JUHL’s overall operational profile. It is no stretch to say that the success of this initial project could set the stage for efflorescence and blooming of wind power in general, both throughout the Company’s primary target markets and beyond.
President of JUHL, John Mitola, underscored the significance of “competitive, reliable storage”, both for wind power entities and the entire utility grid. Pointing to ongoing due diligence with regard to additional wind farm acquisitions by JUHL, Mitola explained that the capacity to “bolt on” a dynamic/comprehensive and highly adaptable storage solution, means the Company can use the acquisition/upgrading loop as a massive growth vector.
President and CEO of Zinc Air, Dave Wilkins, was clearly excited to have Zinc Air so prominently established in the market by a major player like JUHL and affirmed Zinc Air’s intent to focus on wind and other renewable market’s for the storage technology.
Dan Juhl is confident that if the Company can effectively demonstrate the capacity to build a combination wind farm/storage solution for the cost of a new coal plant, JUHL and wind can stand toe-to-toe with competitors in the wholesale energy market.
A deployable comprehensive wind farm model is the goal, and the first phase of the new project at Woodstock Hill will try to secure a revenue arrangement from a utility buyer, while showcasing the Zinc Air battery technology.
For more information on Juhl Wind Inc. and today’s agreement, please visit the Company’s website at: www.juhlwind.com
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