October 24, 2010 - MUSKEGON - The latest Michigan Alternative and Renewable Energy Center tenant in Muskegon is a developer of vertical wind turbines and wireless energy management systems.

McKenzie Bay International Ltd. has set up shop as the fourth alternative energy incubator company at the Grand Valley State University energy center. McKenzie Bay relocated its headquarters from Brighton.

"The high-profile facility will provide more than just an office for (McKenzie Bay)," company President Kevin Cook wrote investors this month. "It is a living laboratory featuring on-site distributed generation sources with ample space for public gatherings. It is a perfect location for (McKenzie Bay) to host meetings, seminars and conferences."

McKenzie Bay is in the process of completing installation of its first WindStor vertical commercial wind turbine at the Pioneer Bluff Apartments in Ishpeming, in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

Testing of the 162-foot vertical turbine continues as the company negotiates with the local housing commission and the local public utility for a final rate for electricity generated by the unit.

The company also has reached an agreement with a developer of permanent magnet generators and motion technology. The new partnership will keep McKenzie Bay moving forward in improving its wind turbine technology, Cook reported.

McKenzie Bay is working to develop a wireless control system to optimize lighting systems. Cook describes it as a wireless energy management system to integrate building energy systems with renewable energy technologies.

Finally, McKenzie Bay is part of a Clean Green Energy group that received a U.S. Department of Energy mid-sized wind turbine grant. Clean Green Energy is working with 16 Upper Peninsula school districts to install alternative energy systems - including the WindStor turbine - and provide high school students an alternative energy learning environment.

"As the technology and services developed by McKenzie Bay and its collaborators are successfully commercialized, opportunities for job development in the West Michigan region will grow," said Arn Boezaart, director of MAREC. "We look forward to helping McKenzie Bay develop its technologies through guidance and business consultation."

McKenzie Bay moves its operations to MAREC with two employees. The fledging alternative energy company is in a "restructuring and rebuilding" mode, Boezaart said. The company and its investors have established a publicly traded company that is working to be listed on a stock exchange.

Cook brings nearly 30 years of energy industry experience to the startup company. Most recently, he was a contract energy management consultant for a Michigan Energy Office initiative with schools, local governments and housing authorities.

McKenzie Bay is the fourth business in the MAREC business incubator, joining Energy Partners LLC, Logical Lighting Co. and Smart Vision Light. Scandia Offshore Wind - the Norwegian-American company exploring the development of commercial wind farms on Lake Michigan - also has office space in the alternative energy center.

Dave Alexander | Muskegon Chronicle
Email Dave Alexander: dalexander@muskegonchronicle.com
Published: Sunday, October 24, 2010, 8:08 AM