Orenda Energy – the Iroquois and Livingston, Scotland-based turbine manufacturer for the global medium distributed wind industry – has licensed its proprietary ‘tilting tower’ technology to Montreal–based wind turbine company, Eocycle Technologies.
Eocycle Technologies manufactures 25kW direct-drive wind turbines for those involved in areas such as agricultural, business and requiring rural electrification in remote regions worldwide.
This is the first time Orenda has entered into a technology licensing agreement with another turbine manufacturer since the company was established in 2012.
The technology being licensed to Eocycle was initially designed for Orenda’s Skye™ 51kW medium wind turbine. This utilises a patented, multi-pivot point technology – a hydraulically operated hinged ‘tilting’ tower, which allows for large nacelles to be raised and lowered to heights of up to 36m and thereby reduces installation and servicing costs. This means servicing is done at ground level and does not need expensive crane hire.
Even although Eocycle 25kW turbine requires low maintenance this means that future Eocycle customers can protect their asset by lowering and securing it whenever there is maintenance required or in advance of an approaching storm.
Gerry Lalonde, Chief Executive, Orenda, said: “We are delighted with this validation of our technology and business approach that entering into this agreement gives us. Orenda’s success in closing this deal, which we envisage being the first of many, was based on Eocycle’s requirement to look beyond its current turbine design and integrate our patented technology which is completely unique in the renewables industry across any size or scale of wind turbine.”
Richard Legault, Chief Executive, Eocycle Technologies, commented: “Like Orenda, we are a pioneering wind energy company and by licensing Orenda’s technology, we pave the way for this partnership to flourish. Here are two companies, headquartered in the Montreal area, showing the small and medium wind energy industry that we are both innovators and pioneers in what we bring to the marketplace.”
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