July 11, 2004

Wind Harvest Company Wind News
A compilation of story leads from around the world.
By:  Kevin Wolf

Note:  These story titles and lead paragraphs predominantly come from Energy Central's daily posting of the world's energy stories. Others are sent to me by subscribers of Wind News.  Energy Central requires paid membership to read full stories.  You can often paste the headline into the Google search engine and find the original source of the story.   When I have them, I will include the URL.  Please send me stories that you find, and I will add them into the next edition of Wind News.  Thank you. Kevin
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RHODE ISLAND PASSES 15% BY 2020 RENEWABLE PORTFOLIO STANDARD

The Rhode Island General Assembly unanimously passed a bill that requires 15% of the state's electricity to come from renewable energy sources by the year 2020.  The bill will become law unless Governor Donald Carcieri (R) vetoes it within a week after passage.  Only 2% of the target requirement can come from existing renewable energy sources.

The Rhode Island bill enables the state's Economic Development Corp. to enter into long-term contracts for renewable energy certificates. The Economic Development Corp. can then resell these certificates, on a short term basis if need be, to utilities that seek them for compliance with the renewable energy standard.  The Economic Development Corporation will also receive any alternative compliance payments, and can invest the funds into projects whose generation can be used to meet future renewable energy requirements.

Little if any project development is expected to occur within the state as a result of the standard because the state has little land available for development.  Proponents of the policy are counting on out-of-state projects supplying the required renewable energy while spurring in-state economic development.  For example, TPI Composites, a wind turbine blade manufacturer, is located in Rhode Island.  And executives with Cape Wind, a large offshore wind project proposed for nearby Massachusetts, are considering using a former naval air station, now owned by Rhode Island's economic development corporation, as the manufacturing and staging space for their project.  Proponents also expect that the state will benefit from regional long-term price stabilization resulting from greater use of renewable energy.
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SolarAccess.com News
College Sets Standard With Green Tags

by Maine Green Power Connection Newsletter

Bar Harbor, Maine - July 7, 2004 [SolarAccess.com] College of the Atlantic
(COA) in Bar Harbor, Maine took a lead in buying clean electricity when it
became the first college in Maine to make a 20-year commitment to purchasing
100 percent of its electricity through new wind electricity. COA signed two
agreements, one is with Endless Energy Corporation (EEC) of Yarmouth, Maine
to buy electricity generated by wind for 20 years, starting upon completion
of EEC's Redington Mountain Wind farm in 2005. Under a second agreement with
NativeEnergy of Charlotte, Vermont, COA purchased renewable energy credits,
or green tags, to match its electricity use until the EEC contract begins.
This purchase enabled COA to help build the first Native American wind farm
on the South Dakota Rosebud Sioux reservation.
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COUNCIL ENDORSES CLEANER ENERGY

  Calling it a historic step toward a cleaner power system, the Los
  Angeles City Council on Tuesday urged the Department of Water and
  Power to buy more electricity through renewable sources even
  though it will mean higher rates for consumers.
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UTILITY REQUESTS NEW RATE INCREASE

  Rising prices to buy coal and natural gas to run southeastern
  Wisconsin's power plants would be passed on to customers of We
  Energies under a rate increase requested this week, the third
  request the utility has made since May.
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SCANA SUBSIDIARY FILES ELECTRIC RATE INCREASE REQUEST

  South Carolina Electric & Gas Company, principal subsidiary of
  SCANA Corporation , today filed an application with the Public
  Service Commission of South Carolina requesting a 5.66 percent
  overall increase in retail electric base rates.
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BLOW, BLOW THOU WINTER WIND

  The planet can no longer sustain our oil addiction. Renewable
  energies, meanwhile, hold the key to ending poverty.
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FIRM WANTS TO PRODUCE ENERGY FROM OFFSHORE WINDS

  A New Iberia company wants to take the winds blowing offshore and
  turn them into power for Louisiana homes.
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POTENTIAL THREAT TO WILDLIFE STALLS AROOSTOOK COUNTY, MAINE, WIND
POWER PLAN

  Maine's first wind energy project has been stalled by the
  possibility that its giant, 400-foot-high turbines could kill
  birds and bats.
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DELIVERY OF WINDMILL PARTS PROVES TO BE MONUMENTAL TASK IN TENNESSEE

  When others eyed the challenge -- hauling huge windmill parts up a
  steep, rutted mountain road with abrupt curves -- they said it
  couldn't be done.
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DROUGHT-STRICKEN FARMERS EAGER TO CASH IN ON WIND POWER GENERATION

  Mixed in with the sound of meadowlarks, tractors and the hum of
  the wind on Colorado's southeastern plains is a low, steady beat:
  "whoop, whoop, whoop."
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NEW ERA AS WORK STARTS ON THE UK'S BIGGEST WIND FARM

  CONSTRUCTION of what will be the UK's largest wind farm in an area
  designated as an RAF low-flying zone has started at Hadyard Hill
  in South Ayrshire.
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MEXICAN OFFICIAL: WE'RE THREATENED BY ENERGY SHORTAGE

  Energy Secretary Fernando Elizondo said Mexico runs the risk of
  energy shortages if it does not make "the necessary investments"
  and that the country's dependency on fuel imports is "dangerous."
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