Financial trouble worries wind company customers
Last Updated: Thursday, August 20, 2009 | 7:30 AM AT
CBC News
The customers of a P.E.I. wind turbine manufacturer are worried about what financial trouble at the company will mean for them.
'I would hope that some of the contracts and agreements that were signed would be honoured.'— Jon Carter, Kittery, Maine
Entegrity CEO Jim Heath has asked the courts for a 45-day extension to file a plan to keep the company going. The Charlottetown Guardian is reporting Thursday morning that the extension has been granted.
The company avoided an effort by a creditor to be put in receivership earlier this week.
Entegrity has sold turbines to wind operations in 70 locations across North America and around the world, and some of those customers are nervous.
The Electricity Association in Kotsebue, Alaska, has been a customer since 1997, and has 15 Entegrity turbines. General manager Brad Reeve said their dealings with the company have been great for 12 years, but things changed several months ago.
"We were waiting on some maintenance personnel to come, and that never seemed to happen. And waiting on some parts here and there, and orders didn't seem to get filled. So it's been a while since we've known there's some issue," said Reeve.
Without parts and maintenance, Reeve said they will have to shut three of the Kotsebue turbines down over the winter, losing much-needed power and revenue.
Looking for refund
The Town of Kittery, Maine, has a different problem. It's looking for Entegrity to honour a guarantee.
The Entegrity turbine it bought last year has produced less than 15 per cent of the power it was supposed to. Town manager Jon Carter said the site the town and Entegrity decided on doesn't get enough wind.
Kittery has an agreement with Entegrity that the P.E.I. company refund the $191,000 spent on the turbine, but it hasn't seen any of that money yet. Carter said he remains hopeful about the refund, even if the company does go bankrupt.
"Anything can happen in bankruptcy," he said.
"I would hope that some of the contracts and agreements that were signed would be honoured."
Calls to Entegrity for comment on this story were not returned.
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