World Wind Watch | Green Energy News

October 20, 2002 – Vol.7 No.30

WORLD WIND WATCH.

Growing up just north of Plymouth, Massachusetts this editor knew of at least one certainty. The same breezes that pushed the Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower towards the coastline would often arrive like clockwork by midday and blow all afternoon.

Soon those reliable breezes may be used to add clean power to the growing economies of the area.

UPC Wind Partners has been given permission by local authorities to erect three to five wind monitoring towers on public property in the town. Plymouth, which has some of the highest points of land on the East Coast (also an aid to good wind resources), could have 10-15 turbines. Power from them would be sold to the town for municipal purposes.

The wind proposal by UPC is for a dispersed wind farm with turbines also in Provincetown at the tip of Cape Cod and New Bedford, once a busy whaling center. Visit UPC at http://www.upcgroup.org/.

With wind power already available on the grid in Pennsylvania, the Borough of Media, about 15 miles west of Philadelphia, will buy 128,111 kilowatt-hours per year of wind energy - enough for 44% of the usage of its Borough Hall and the highway garage.

Purchased through the Energy Cooperative, Media will be buying New Wind Energy(TM), a product of Pennsylvania-based Community Energy, at a cost no higher than the electricity it had been buying under the state’s deregulated electricity market.

Media, population 5600, has a history of green energy. It was the last community in America with an energy-efficient trolley running down its main street. Visit Media at http://www.mediaborough.com/, the Energy Co-operative at http://www.theenergyco-op.com/ and Community Energy at http://www.newwindenergy.com/ .

In what hopefully is the first of many new large wind projects to be announced in the next few months, Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) has signed a contract with FPL Energy to build a 204-megawatt windfarm to be known as New Mexico Wind Energy Center.

To be built in the eastern part of the state, all of the power from the 136 1.5 megawatt turbines will be sold to PNM for resale to its customers. PNM will ask New Mexico Public Regulation Commission (PRC) to approve a voluntary surcharge for the green electricity. Wind generated electricity not sold to interested customers will be sold on the wholesale power market.

The project will be eligible for the U.S. Production Tax Credit which is due to expire at the end of 2003. Other projects to be built next year to take advantage of the PTC will likely by announced soon. Visit FPL Energy at http://www.fplenergy.com/ , PNM at http://www.pnm.com/ .