Former hockey pro drafts new business power play
Greg Neeld’s Hawkeye Energy Corp. expanding its run-of-river ambitions in B.C.
Business in Vancouver December 16-22, 2008; issue 999
Krisendra Bisetty
One-time pro-hockey player Greg Neeld is hoping to score big time in a whole new arena.
The Vancouver entrepreneur is positioning his Hawkeye Energy Corp. to take advantage of B.C.’s rapidly growing renewable energy sector.
In a space of a year, Hawkeye has accelerated its generation capacity from zero to 350 megawatts through a portfolio of run-of-river hydroelectric projects it has amassed.
“We tripped into it,” said Neeld. “We knew we wanted to get into renewable energy, but we started off looking at wind power.”
After doing its “homework,” however, and staking its first three rivers, Hawkeye realized there were many more opportunities in that area, so it quickly ramped up its portfolio.
The Vancouver-based company is one of about 70 others registered as proponents in BC Hydro’s 2008 clean power request for proposals that will target up to 5,000 gigawatts of energy a year from larger projects such as hydro, wind, solar and geothermal energy.
The RFP is in line with the province’s energy plan, which calls for 90% of electricity to come from clean or renewable sources and for all new electricity generation projects to have zero net greenhouse gas emissions.
“We’ve had a very strong response to the clean power call,” said Hydro spokesman Dag Sharman. “And that benefits BC Hydro’s ratepayers because it’s a competitive process, and it allows us to get the best deal for the ratepayers while meeting all of our commitments, environmentally and otherwise.”
None of the proponents have yet secured energy purchase agreements from the utility, which accepted formal project submissions up until November 25. A perusal of the list shows that more than a dozen wind projects – the most likely to be submitted in a single call – are in the cards in B.C., along with numerous run-of-river proposals.
Wind proponents include Nahwitti Wind Power Ltd., which has a project in Holberg, NaiKun Wind Development Inc. (Masset) and North Coast Wind Energy Corp. (Prince Rupert).
Vancouver-based Finavera Renewables Inc. (TSX-V:FVR) has approximately 300 megawatts of projects submitted into the call, including four wind projects in the Peace Region of northeast B.C.
Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. (TSX:INE), meantime, submitted five hydroelectric projects after recently acquiring a majority interest in 18 prospective projects in the Lower Mainland.
Plutonic Power Corp., a Vancouver company at the centre of Canada’s largest single private-sector investment in hydroelectric generation, is also a Hydro proponent in the latest call. Plutonic wants to develop approximately 1,000 megawatts of run-of-river hydroelectric capacity along the southwest coast of B.C.
“We’re right up against Plutonic Power, plus we’ve daisy-chained a total of about 36 rivers in the Toba Valley, Powell River and Jarvis Inlet districts,” said Neeld, who is also president and CEO of Hawkeye Gold & Diamond Inc. (TSX-V:HKO), a mineral exploration company exploring in Nevada and Ontario.
The first phase of Hawkeye’s plan, if it gets the Hydro nod and government permits, is to build 12 run-of-river projects totalling 180 megawatts, along with a 150-kilometre transmission line that would connect to the Hydro power grid.
At a projected capital cost of around $425 million, they would generate enough energy to meet the annual needs for approximately 68,000 homes and offset approximately 540,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year – the equivalent of taking 100,000 passenger vehicles off the road.
“Now’s the best time to get into the B.C. renewable energy space,” said Neeld, who is steering Hawkeye Energy into a 2009 public listing. “In terms of where the markets are right now, renewable energy is where you want to be because even if our markets and economies have some significant adjustments … energy is still something that we all need.
“This is a space in which the leaders of the future are going to be established, and we want to be part of it.”
Neeld, 53, began playing hockey as a 10-year-old on the North Shore.
After moving to Toronto, he played for the Sudbury Wolves and Toronto Marlboros, but suffered a major setback at 18 after he lost an eye when he was hit by a hockey stick. However, he continued playing for various teams in the 1970s, including the Calgary Centennials, Buffalo Sabres and the Minnesota Fighting Saints, and later the Toronto Toros. •
kbisetty@telus.net
