May 26, 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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Investors propose short wind turbines
By Matt Sutkoski

COLCHESTER  If Brian Costello and Greg Strong have their way, wind turbines
scattered across the Champlain Valley will one day spin electricity into the
suburban northwestern Vermont power grid.

Costello, president of Lake Champlain Power, and Strong, of newly formed
Tuvalu Green Power, say they could provide wind-generated electricity
without using the kind of 300-foot wind towers that provoked opposition in
the Northeast Kingdom.

Strong is working with a California-based Wind Harvest Co. and plans to
install turbines in the Champlain Valley. The turbines from Wind Harvest are
far different from the familiar ones that resemble pinwheels.

Wind Harvest turbines stand about 50 feet tall. The blades form hollow
rectangles and spin horizontally.
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'LOW-CARB' ENERGY SEEN AS BIG FUEL SAVER

  A "low-carb" energy diet, using 33 percent fewer hydrocarbons,
  would trim U.S. consumer fuel costs by $438 billion, Cornell
  ecologists claim.
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REPORT CLAIMS EXPANSION OF RENEWABLE ENERGY COULD SAVE $7 BILLION
PER YEAR

  Consumers in Western states could save up to $7 billion a year in
  energy costs through use of more renewable energy and
  conservation, a Boulder research group concludes in a new report.
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ECONOMISTS BELIEVE RISING COST OF INFLATION IS DUE TO ENERGY, STEEL PRICES

  There is a growing consensus among economists that the cost of
  inflation for businesses is accelerating beyond expectations
  because of rising prices for energy, lumber, steel and other commodities.
*******************

 <http://www.energycentral.com/sections/news/nw_article.cfm?id=4875601> EU emissions trade gets long-term lift from Russia
European Union emissions prices were little moved by Russia's surprise backing of the Kyoto Protocol on Friday, though dealers said it would increase longer-term trading opportunities

WIND INDUSTRY CONTINUES TO SURGE

  Public policy and transmission access issues dominated the program
  as the wind industry showcased its march into the energy
  mainstream to 3,500 attendees and 225 exhibitors at Global
  Windpower 2004 in Chicago in late March.
*******************

PLANS FOR WIND FARM WIN SUPPORT

  Surfers and industrialists today spoke out in support of plans for
  a controversial Teesside wind farm.
*******************

WIU TO MEASURE WIND ENERGY

  Western Illinois University officials announced Monday that the
  Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs at the school has been
  awarded more than $400,000 to assist with wind energy projects
  around the state.
*******************

LEHMAN BROTHERS SEES THREE NEW LNG TERMINALS OPERATING BY 2010

  Lehman Brothers is forecasting that only three new liquefied
  natural gas (LNG) import terminals, out of a total of about 40
  proposed terminals, will be built in North America by 2010 for a
  total of seven operating terminals, which will represent about 10%
  of U.S. gas supply compared to about 2.5% in 2003. - (NGIís Daily
  Gas Price Index)
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COAL SUPPLIES IN A PINCH?

  Oil and natural gas aren't the only fossil fuels with high prices
  these days. A tight coal market is making the nation's most
  abundant fuel an increasingly expensive one to fall back on as
  spot prices have been rising since September.
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U.S. Wind Industry Expects Little Growth in 2004
From DOE's EERE Newsletter - 5/26/04

The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), the U.S. wind industry's trade association, projects new wind energy installations to total less than 500 megawatts this year, a precipitous drop from the 1,687 megawatts of wind generating capacity installed in 2003. AWEA blames the slowdown on the current lack of a production tax credit for wind power. The tax credit expired at the end of last year, although an extension of the credit is currently working its way through Congress. See the <http://www.awea.org/news/news0405121qt.html>AWEA press release.

Despite the slowdown, many companies are still planning future wind projects. The largest is the 400-megawatt Kingman Project in Arizona, to be located about 40 miles southeast of the Hoover Dam. Western Wind Energy Corporation is starting engineering, feasibility studies, and environmental assessment for the project, which will be built in several stages. In California, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) is preparing a draft Environmental Impact Report for its 120-megawatt Pine Tree Wind project, first proposed in February of last year. In Texas, The Keith Companies, Inc., an engineering and consulting firm, is developing a 91.5-megawatt addition to the 37-megawatt Sweetwater Wind Power project. In New Mexico, the State Land Office has signed a lease for an 80-megawatt wind project, to be located southeast of Tucumcari in Quay County. And in Nebraska, the Board of Directors for the Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD) gave approval for the utility to pursue a 60-megawatt wind project. The board approved a 30-megawatt project in December 2003, but since then the utility has secured interest from other utilities in the larger project. See the press releases from Western Wind Energy (<http://www.westernwindenergy.com/news/NRMay12-04.pdf>PDF 122 KB), <http://www.ladwp.com/ladwp/cms/ladwp005618.jsp>LADWP, <http://www.keithco.com/viewpr.asp?i=103>The Keith Companies, the New Mexico State Land Office (<http://www.nmstatelands.org/landoffice/news/2004/2004_0513windfarm.pdf>PDF 60 KB), and <http://www.nppd.com/News/News_Releases/2004/Additional_Files/wind_facility.asp>NPPD. <http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/alternate.html>Download Acrobat Reader.

Finally, two wind power projects that were completed late last year were dedicated only recently: the 160-megawatt Green Mountain Energy Wind Farm in Brazos, Texas, and the 162-megawatt Colorado Green wind facility near Lamar, Colorado. The latter wind project led Colorado Governor Bill Owens to declare May 14th as "Colorado Wind Energy Day." See the press releases from <http://www.greenmountain.com/about/press_events/2004_04_20II.jsp>Green Mountain Energy Company and Governor Owens (<http://www.state.co.us/oemc/press/040514.pdf>PDF 38 KB), as well as the governor's <http://www.state.co.us/oemc/press/040514.htm>wind energy proclamation.