TORONTO, Oct. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Atlantic Wind &
Solar Inc. (OTC: AWSL), presumably like everyone interested in
Ontario's renewable energy future,
welcomes McGuinty back home. While the months prior to the election
were tumultuous, Atlantic spent the time submitting FiT
applications in the manner of "business as usual" and continuing to
fine tune its approach to the installations at hand and the
Ontario business going forward.
The Company, having submitted FiT applications just before the
election and again the following day, can report that the
application pile was considerably higher the day after the election
versus any day it had seen in the past few weeks and months. The
FiT program is alive and booming.
The Company also notes that, from a renewable energy
perspective, the strong support for the NDP in the election shows a
strong support for energy conservation and is in full agreement
that an electron saved is an electron earned - or, in this case, an
electron produced.
Record Quarters for Ontario
subsidiary
The Company is pleased to report that in quarters two and three
of 2011 its Ontario subsidiary,
Atlantic Solar Inc. (ASI), processed more CAE solar projects from
its pipeline than in any similar prior period since the inception
of the OPA FiT Program. ASI had always remained optimistic that
more OPA contract offers would be offered at the current tariff
rates and is more so given the recent electoral results.
Atlantic CEO, Mr. Gilles Trahan
comments: "Atlantic submitted over 11 megawatts of additional CAE
solar project applications to the OPA during this short period of
time and has prepared another 10 megawatts of applications now
ready for submission." Mr. Trahan continued, "Since the
restructuring of the organization last May the Company not only
increased its processing speed but did so under a significantly
reduced cost structure, greatly improving the Corporation's bottom
line."
Project Update
At this point Atlantic has submitted all necessary documentation
to the OPA for the 20 contracts it has been offered, has received
the Waiver of Notice to Proceed (NTP) on 19 out of 20 projects, and
has received Connection Impact Assessment (CIA) approval on 4 of
the 20. Construction dates for the initial projects will be
announced once NTP is granted.
Fine Tuning Its Approach
Atlantic is fine tuning its approach to the imminent
installations in Ontario and
perpetually fine tuning the future Ontario business. To this end the Company is
currently finalizing the requirements for turn-key solutions
for use in, at least, projects one through four.
This has also led to a fine tuning of the Company's relationship
with AIM Global Energy Inc. The two companies have entered
agreements on various levels over the last two years. Those same
two years were marked by a long waiting period for installations.
Thus while Atlantic continues its interest in the AIM technology it
has to acknowledge that its initial interest in AIM was based on
the competitive advantage of inverter performance at the time plus
the geographical advantage of its assembly in Ontario and that these two points together
would represent a solid head start in Ontario. But both the LOI-to-Lease and
Engineering-to-NTP processes turned out to take much longer than
anticipated. Atlantic originally saw the Ontario business beginning as a small but
steadily growing series of installations that would allow Atlantic
and AIM to grow together. Atlantic now foresees the first
Ontario installations being a
single batch of 4, or 8, or even 16, depending on how fast the next
CIA approvals are granted. A bulk-installation approach favours the
speed and economies of scale of turn-key solutions over customized
installations. In addition the passage of time has brought more
manufacturing to Ontario, as
indeed was the intent of the FiT Program, plus improvements in
technology all around. Atlantic will continue to evaluate using the
AIM inverter on a project by project basis but is unlikely to use
the technology for the first round or two of Ontario installations.
The S-1 Registration and Offering
Finally, Atlantic continues to evaluate the timing of the filing
of its SEC S-1 Registration statement. A year ago Atlantic had
planned a public offering to raise funds to build and own the first
round of renewable energy projects in Ontario. Between the project delays, election
uncertainty, and the general market nervousness of 2011 the timing
has never seemed right to file. The Company now plans to construct
the first Ontario projects through
partnerships and shared ownership structures. Atlantic will earn
its developer fee which can be applied toward further project
development. The Company will continue to keep its S-1 up to date
and ready to file when conditions are right. It remains a goal of
the Company to raise funds to build and own power producing assets.
These latest election results provide comfort that there are many
more contracts to come in Ontario.
For more information about Atlantic Wind & Solar, view the
corporate web site at:
www.AtlanticWindandSolar.com and/or email:
info@AtlanticWindandSolar.com
Join the Atlantic Facebook page at:
http://www.facebook.com/AtlanticWindandSolar
Disclaimer: Shareholders and investors are strongly cautioned
against placing undue reliance on information set forth in these
communications in making any investment decisions concerning our
securities. The matters set forth in this press release are
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the "safe harbor"
provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and
uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially.
These risks are detailed from time to time in the Company's
periodic reports filed with the OTCMarkets.com including the
company's Annual Report, Quarterly Reports and other periodic
filings. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date
hereof. The Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update
these forward-looking statements.
SOURCE Atlantic Wind & Solar Inc.