Optiwind turbine up and running on the Klug Hill Farm in Torrington

TORRINGTON -- The Optiwind wind turbine built on the Klug Hill Farm is generating power, company spokesman David Hurwitt said on Saturday.

The first part of the turbine began generating power on Sept. 9, but is still in the testing phase, Hurwitt said.

"We can't just turn it on and walk away," he said. "We are conducting tests with the first part of the turbine and will soon lower it in order to put on generation 2 parts."

Hurwitt said the first portion of the turbine will be lowered in the next three weeks, and will be raised back to the top of the tower structure sometime in November, equipped with the new parts.

The turbine being built is a first for the company and will provide power to Klug Farm, owned by George "Butch" Klug.

"Once all the wind gathering devices are in place, we will be able to generate 150 kilowatts of power, which is more than the farm will need," Hurwitt said. "The rest will be added back to the power grid."

The type of turbine is different from some that are in operation right now on larger wind farms.

This structure is a mid-sized turbine that is designed to provide power to individuals and companies that would spend about $75,000 per year on electricity.

"We saw a hole in the turbine market. There were large ones on wind farms and smaller ones used to provide power on boats and for small structures," Hurwitt said. "Four out of every five turbines are sold outside of the United States, so there is definitely a market both in the U.S. and abroad."

Optiwind first attempted to obtain a site at Woodridge Lake in Goshen to construct one of its turbines, but the concept was turned down following months of meetings with the Goshen Planning and Zoning Commission.

In the meantime, Klug approached the company, asking that they consider his farm as a possible site, with the idea that having wind energy would lower his farm's high electricity costs.

Connecticut Innovations, the state's quasi-public authority for technology investing and innovative development, invested a $1 million loan in Optiwind Corp., the second investment made from the Connecticut Clean Tech Fund.

The fund is a partnership between several state agencies focused on energy and development -- such as the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund and the Department of Economic and Community Development -- which makes investments in companies focused on conserving energy and protecting the environment.

Under the agreement with Klug, Optiwind will lease the land from the farm and the farm will reap the benefits of the power generated from the turbine.

"We are making good progress on the turbine," Hurwitt said. "We are gathering our results and everything is moving forward."

According to an Optiwind press release, conventional 3-bladed turbines are designed for wind farms which typically have both very high wind speeds and low population density.

Schools and businesses, however, are generally located in low wind speed, more populated locations.

With this understanding, the release continued.

Optiwind's engineers designed their new turbine from scratch. Using a self-erecting tower with a rotating cylinder around it, wind is accelerated around the cylinder and forced though a series of smaller fans mounted on each side of the structure.

Using multiple permanent magnet direct drive generators, each powered by a 5-bladed fixed pitch fan, Optiwind's completed turbines will be rated up to 300 kilowatts, enough energy to power up to 50 homes
