April 13, 2005

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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WEST VIRGINIA WIND FARMS NEED CLOSER LOOK, MOLLOHAN SAYS

  Rep. Alan Mollohan, D-W.Va., believes state officials should take
  a closer look at the impact windmill farms will have on areas in
  West Virginia  that are major tourist attractions.
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RENEWABLE ENERGY FUTURE IN GERMANY LIES OFFSHORE; SHORTAGE OF
SUITABLE SITES AS WINDFARMS INCREASE

  In a landscape dominated by muddy fields and scrubland stretching
  far into the distance, wind turbines can seem rather beautiful.
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WIND SHIFTS ON BAT-TURBINE STUDY

  After two years of documenting the fact its wind turbines in
  Tucker County are killing large numbers of bats, FPL Energy wants
  to focus research this summer on possible solutions to the problem.
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NATURAL GAS RIDES OIL COATTAILS

  Forecasts of a "super-spike" in the price of oil by Goldman Sachs
  this week sent a shiver through the natural gas market. -

Note from Refocus Weekly (Goldman Sachs is following through with what their forecast portends.)
- Investment banking firm Goldman Sachs Group will purchase Zilkha Renewable Energy, a private wind energy developer based in Texas. The sale price was not disclosed. Zilkha has a portfolio of 4,000 MW in various stages of development in a dozen states. Goldman Sachs will acquire 100% of Zilkha's interests in the 200 MW Flat Rock windfarm in New York and the 150 MW second phase of the Blue Canyon facility in Oklahoma, both of which will be commissioned this year. ³Goldman Sachs believes that wind and other renewable forms of energy will become an increasingly important part of the world's energy mix,² says chairman Henry Paulson.
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WINDMILLS BLOW ILL FOR BIRDS

  As Illinois pushes for clean energy from the wind, questions
  remain about the environmental effects of the giant wind turbines
  now emerging  on the state's farmlands.
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AES ANNOUNCES JOINT VENTURE WITH EHN TO DEVELOP WIND ENERGY PROJECTS
IN NEW YORK STATE; AES TO EXPAND WIND FOOTPRINT TO 14 STATES

  The AES Corporation (NYSE:AES) today announced it has entered into
  a joint venture with EHN, one of the world's largest renewable
  energy companies, to develop wind generation projects in New York state.
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IN FIRST MONTH, 'GREEN POWER' IS CATCHING ON; PROGRAM AIMS TO
PROVIDE ELECTRICITY VIA RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES

  Naperville is turning green. After only a month in operation, the
  city's renewable energy program has piqued the interest of more
  than 500 taxpayers, or 1 percent of the city's electric clients.
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STIMULATE £500 MILLION INVESTMENT IN RENEWABLES
BELFAST, Northern Ireland, March 30, 2005 [Refocus Weekly] A renewables obligation has been launched in Northern Ireland that will require electricity suppliers to source 6.3% of their power from renewables by 2013.
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ScottishPowerís PPM Announces First Northeastern US Wind Project

ScottishPower (LSE: SPW; NYSE: SPI) today announced its US competitive subsidiary, PPM Energy, and its joint venture partner, Zilkha Renewable Energy of Houston, will build and own the Maple Ridge Windfarm in upstate New York. Maple Ridge is expected to be 198 MW, nearly quadrupling the total installed wind capacity in New York. The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE: GS) recently announced plans to acquire Zilkha Renewable Energy, subject to regulatory approvals.

PPMís share of the capital invested in the project is expected to be approximately $160 million, with completion of the 120-turbine windfarm expected in December 2005. It is expected that the project will be immediately earnings enhancing with returns anticipated to be consistent with internal targets.

The state of New York recently enacted legislation requiring 25 percent of energy to come from renewable sources by 2013, the highest such renewable portfolio standard in the US. Additionally, Maple Ridge is strategically located so that it can sell power into the New York power pool, and has sold renewable energy certificates (RECs) under a 10-year contract to the state of New York.

PPM controls about 830 MW of operating wind energy, and previously announced three other projects totalling 325 MW earlier in the year. Along with the Maple Ridge Windfarm, these projects will bring PPM's total wind portfolio to approximately 1,255 MW by the end of 2005, well on target toward its goal of at least 2,300 MW online by 2010.

PPM CEO Terry Hudgens said: "The Maple Ridge Windfarm begins the promised expansion of our US wind business in the eastern United States and will help us continue our goal of becoming the leading US renewable energy company."
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Greenpeace objects to plans for 234-turbine wind farm

JAMES REYNOLDS
ENVIRONMENT CORRESPONDENT

GREENPEACE has made its first ever objection to an onshore wind farm in the UK - the massive 234 turbine development around Stornoway on Lewis - spelling a major setback for the renewables industry in Scotland.

Although it is a staunch advocate of renewable forms of power generation, including wind, the environmental organisation believes that the proposal to build the world¹s biggest wind farm on the island, producing 700 megawatts of electricity, will have a negative impact on populations of rare and protected birds, including golden eagles.

Instead, it is calling for a phased introduction of the turbines in areas where they will cause least impact to bird life, followed by a period of close monitoring.

If the huge turbines are seen to have no negative effect on the birds, the group would then approve of more turbines being added. This, it says, would give the wildlife the chance to get used to the turbines and adapt their behaviour and habits.

Such a strategy is likely to be rejected by the developer, AMEC, which needs to ensure that the wind farm is big enough to produce enough energy and money to fund an expensive interconnecter that will take the electricity to the mainland and on to the national grid. It is widely believed that only on such a massive scale is the project able to remain economically viable.


 Novera Energy of Australia has formed a joint venture with Renewable Energy Development Group of Scotland to develop windfarms in Scotland and northern England. Most sites have binding land option agreements, and initial development has the potential for 200 MW of new wind capacity over the next four years. Once developed, a site may be offered for sale to Novera Macquarie Renewable Energy, a joint venture established by Novera and Macquarie Bank in December. Novera recently completed the 14.5 MW Mynydd Clogau windfarm in Wales, which will be commissioned in April 2006.

- Fuxin City in China¹s Liaoning Province will construct 20 windfarms with total capacity of 1 million kWh with an investment of CNY 10 billion. Last summer, officials monitored wind speeds and found that half the villages had sufficient resources for turbines. The facilities will generate CNY 2 billion a year of power.
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Danish manufacturers increase market share
Anders Mika Dalegaard (2005-04-05)
http://www.windpower.org/en/news0504065.htm

The two Danish wind turbine manufacturers increased their share of the global wind power market.

Danish based Vestas and Siemens Wind Power achieved a 40.3% share of the world market in 2004 compared with 38.5% in 2003.

The two manufacturers were ranked number one and five in 2004 amongst the worlds wind turbine manufacturer, the consultancy company BTM Consult states in the 2004 edition of the statistical report World Market Update.

In 2004 the new capacity totalled to 8.154 MW ­ a minor decrease compared to 2003.  A weak US market was the main reason for this years absence of growth. New emerging markets especially in Asia calls for a positive growth outlook of approximately 15% for the coming years.

The slower US market halted the market growth of the American manufacturer GE Wind. The American company was ranked as number four, while Spanish Gamesa and German Enercon were ranked two and three on the top 10 list of suppliers.

BTM Consult estimates that the wind power market will be booming in 2005 with a growth of 26%. The consultancy company further estimates that in approx. 70.000 MW new wind power capacity will be installed world wide the coming five years.
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