Energy Composites Corp. to Develop Wind Turbine Blade Production Facility in Wisconsin

November 6, 2009 – Vol.14 No.33

Energy Composites Corp. to Develop Wind Turbine Blade Production Facility in Wisconsin.

Energy Composites Corporation (ECC) has announced that it has reached agreement with the City of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin to develop two parcels totaling 93 acres into the world’s most advanced wind blade facility. The announcement represents the next major milestone in the accelerating deployment of ECC’s WindFiber (tm) strategy.

Under the developers agreement between the City of Wisconsin Rapids and ECC, the City has agreed to sell a 39 acre parcel and a 54 acre parcel in the Rapids East Commerce Center to ECC for $500/acre for the development of a major utility-scale wind blade production facility and associated logistics center. The agreement provides for at least $7.5 million in development incentives from the City, including site improvements, job creation cash credits, and additional cash payments. The minimum incentive threshold was calculated based on ECC’s original plans for a facility that would produce enough blades to equip wind energy systems producing 750 megawatts of power per year. Since ECC’s final design will provide blades for more than 1,200 megawatts of power annually -- a 60% increase in output -- the Company anticipates that the final level of developers incentives from the City will grow significantly as the size of the total tax increment grows. Closing on the land acquisition will occur before the end of December.

Adrian Williams, WindFiber’s (tm) director and the central architect of the Windfiber strategy, commented that “This agreement sets all of the wheels into motion. ECC’s blade plant will be the first production facility in North America that is designed to produce blades up to 65 meters in length, ideally positioning us to deliver blade solutions for the coming generation of large-diameter onshore and offshore wind energy turbines. These larger machines, already in use throughout Europe, maximize energy capture and minimize the cost of energy produced. The WindFiber plant will enjoy maximum production design flexibility in order to meet the blade requirements of our customers. We will also be able to employ innovative supply chain strategies that will give us a strong competitive edge as well as unique product and manufacturing technologies that will deliver significant improvements in blade reliability, turbine availability and manufacturing efficiency. As we begin to break ground, we will roll out the details on these advantages to the marketplace, as well as the other key elements of our WindFiber strategy.”

ECC operates a world-class, automated 73,000 sq. ft. climate-controlled manufacturing facility in Wisconsin Rapids, WI, employing advanced composite materials to design, engineer and manufacture complex composite structures, vessels and processing systems for a range of clean-tech applications that include: wind energy system components, flue gas desulfurization for power plants, infrastructure for bio-fuel storage and processing, infrastructure for managing waste water and drinking water, advanced municipal utilities infrastructure, and caustic material storage and handling systems for the petrochemical, mining and the pulp and paper industries. ECC also provides 24/7 field service crews nationwide for wind energy system composites maintenance, repair and overhaul; industrial retrofit, shutdown and maintenance; system installation; and repair and inspection services.(11/5/09)

Links:

Energy Composites
http://www.energycompositescorp.com

Disclaimer, Forward-Looking or Safe Harbor Statement on original press release: Yes