International Power Canada's Brockville Solar Project under Construction, Creating a New Stream of Local Jobs

TORONTO, July 6, 2012 /CNW/ - International Power Canada (IPC) announced today that construction has commenced at the Brockville Solar project in Leeds County, Ontario. The project, developed under Ontario's Feed-in Tariff (FIT) Program, will have an installed capacity of 10 megawatts (MW), sufficient to serve nearly 1,700 Ontario homes annually. The project is expected to begin operating in early 2013.

IPC and its affiliates currently operate 362 MW of wind-powered and 112 MW of natural gas-fueled power generation facilities. The Brockville project is IPC's first solar project.

IPC's President Mike Crawley remarked, "With Brockville, IPC is diversifying our technology base and entering a new and exciting business area. We hope this is the first of many solar projects in our portfolio. We are pleased that the Brockville project is now under construction and will soon be providing clean, renewable energy to the province."

The $50 million project is located in the Township of Elizabethtown-Kitley, in Eastern Ontario. The AMEC Black & McDonald Joint Venture has been appointed as the EPC contractor responsible for engineering, construction and performance of the project. The solar modules are supplied by Suntech, the world's largest producer of solar modules. The construction team consists primarily of local labourers and electricians. "We have mobilized at the site and anticipate being at peak labour force - approximately eighty workers - later this summer," said Peter Calabrese, Vice President at Black & McDonald.

To date, the site has been cleared, and final engineering is underway. Civil works will continue throughout the summer to construct the racks for the modules. Solar photovoltaic modules will begin arriving at the site in July.

The Brockville project also marks one of the first utility-scale solar projects for Suntech in Ontario. "We are very excited to be providing modules to the Brockville project. This builds on our global experience and demonstrates our commitment to the Ontario market," said Howard Gomes, Suntech's Director of Sales, Canada.

Today, International Power operates 27 renewable facilities powered by solar, wind, biomass, and conventional hydro energy, totaling a capacity of 667 MW within North America. Additionally, two pumped storage hydro plants add another 1,124 MW to the clean energy mix. In Canada specifically, the company currently operates five wind farms totaling 362 MW in the Canadian Maritimes and Ontario, and has another 300 MW of wind generation projects under construction in Ontario and British Columbia.

About International Power in North America:
International Power manages a range of energy businesses in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, including electricity generation and cogeneration, natural gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) distribution and sales, asset-based trading and origination, and retail energy sales and related services to commercial and industrial customers.

The company owns and/or operates cogeneration, steam, and chilled water facilities, representing a capacity of more than 14,000 MW of electricity generation, 6.0 million pounds per hour of steam, and 42,000 tons per hour of chilled water. Renewable fuels—wind, hydro, and biomass—power 27 of the facilities in the portfolio. The company's natural gas assets include an LNG receiving terminal in Everett, Massachusetts, which currently meets approximately 20 percent of New England's annual gas demand; an offshore LNG import facility off the coast of Massachusetts; and natural gas distribution networks and pipelines in Mexico that serve nearly 400,000 customers.

For more information, please visit www.iprplc-gdfsuez.com and www.gdfsuez.com

About AMEC Black & McDonald:
The AMEC Black & McDonald joint venture has served the renewable power industry for over 10 years and provides a full range of environmental, engineering, procurement and construction services for projects in the Americas. Services are provided on a design-build basis or through other contracting arrangements.  More information is available at www.amecblackandmcdonald.ca

AMEC
AMEC (LSE: AMEC) is a focused supplier of consultancy, engineering and project management services to its customers in the world's oil and gas, minerals and metals, clean energy, environment and infrastructure markets. With annual revenues of more than C$5.1 billion, AMEC designs, delivers and maintains strategic and complex assets and employs over 27,000 people in around 40 countries worldwide. More information is available at www.amec.com

Black & McDonald
Established in 1921, Black & McDonald Limited is a privately held Canadian contracting company operating across Canada, the United States and in selected global markets. The company provides a full range of electrical, mechanical, utility, and maintenance services to commercial, industrial, institutional, and government markets. Black & McDonald is registered and licensed to do business in all territories and provinces, operating out of a network of 20 offices from coast to coast in Canada, with over 4,000 employees. More information is available at www.blackandmcdonald.com

About Suntech
Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (NYSE: STP) is the world's largest producer of solar panels for residential, commercial, industrial, and utility applications. With regional headquarters in China, Switzerland, and the United States, and gigawatt-scale manufacturing worldwide, Suntech has delivered more than 25 million photovoltaic panels to over a thousand customers in more than eighty countries. Suntech's pioneering R&D creates customer-centric innovations that are driving solar past grid parity against fossil fuels. Suntech's mission is to provide everyone with reliable access to nature's cleanest and most abundant energy source.

For more information about Suntech's people and products visit: http://www.suntech-power.com.