Wind Today - Q2 2008 - (Page 26)

Ken Hensley, director of Gentry County operations for Wind Capital Group; and James Walterscheid, site manager for Suzlon Wind Energy Corp. The Wind Capital Group’s northwest Missouri wind farms operate in three counties: Gentry, Atchison, and Nodaway. Loess Hills Cow Branch Conception Bluegrass Ridge Deere Wind John Deere Wind Energy John Deere Wind Energy, a financial services business of Deere & Company, provides long-term debt and equity investment, comprehensive project development services, wind turbine supply, and operations management for wind energy projects in the United States and Canada. John Deere Wind Energy currently has more than 27 wind farms in operation or under construction in six states. According to David Drescher, vicepresident, John Deere Wind Energy, these four projects represent the kind of investment that John Deere Wind Energy likes to participate in because they provide synergies between all parties involved in the development. Associated Electric Cooperativ ative Cooperative, Inc. That same year Carnahan approached Associated Electric Cooperative, Inc, Springfield, MO (AECI/417881-1204), about purchasing power from the proposed wind farm. “From the start of work on this project,” says Carnahan, “representatives from the network of local electric cooperatives understood the potential of wind power and its benefit to their members and the communities they serve.” AECI, which sells power to customers in Missouri, Iowa, and Oklahoma, agreed to purchase wind power produced by the Wind Capital Group’s proposed wind farm for 20 years. The cooperative has since agreed to purchase power from the Cow Branch and Conception wind farms as well. AECI was nominated by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and selected “2006 Wind Coop of the Year” by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for voluntarily becoming a leader and partner in renewable energy development. On January 31, 2006, Carnahan, with public officials and representatives from participating companies and organizations, announced the wind development project at the state Capitol in Jefferson City. Wind Capital Group’s northwest Missouri wind farms consist of four sites—Bluegrass Ridge, Cow Branch, Conception, and Loess Hills. Bluegrass Ridge Wind Farm Bluegrass Ridge Wind Farm The first of the four Missouri wind farms constructed by the Wind Capital Group was the Bluegrass Ridge Wind Farm located 30 miles northeast of St. Joseph near King City, MO. The name of the Gentry County wind farm comes from the community’s 1920sera industry of harvesting bluegrass seeds. Following its January announcement, construction of the Bluegrass Wind Farm began in June, 2006. Hensley says the original plan was to install 24 Suzlon 2.1 MW wind turbines on the 9,000 acres leased from 12 landowners. According to Hensley, the city of Columbia, MO requested additional electricity output from the project so another three turbines were added to up the total to 27. In late 2004, Columbia’s voters had approved an ordinance requiring that two percent of the city’s electricity come from renewable sources by 2008. Their purchase of wind power from the Bluegrass Ridge Wind Farm through AECI goes toward meeting that goal. John Deere Wind Energy negotiated purchase of the turbines which, Hensley says, were manufactured in India and shipped through the port in Houston, TX. Construction, which lasted six months, involved crews numbering 100-150 people. In December, 2007, at a reported cost of $80 million, the Bluegrass Ridge Wind Farm was completed. Hensley says about 500 people, which is almost half the population of King City, attended the wind farm’s dedication. The project is expected to pay more WIND TODA Y Second Quarter 2008 Suzlon S88, 2.1 MW wind turbines operate at the Bluegrass Ridge, Cow Branch, and Conception Wind Farms. 26

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Wind Today - Q2 2008

Wind Today - Q2 2008 Contents WINDPOWER 2008 - Host City - Houston WINDPOWER 2008 Special Events CanWEA 2008: Fast Forward to Wind Global Wind Plant Ownership Top 15 States with Wind Energy Installed Ranking the Percentage of State Electricity from Wind Largest Wind Farms in the United States Owners with the Most Wind Power Assets in the United States Rick Perry Bluegrass Ridge, Cow Branch, and Conception Wind Farms Loess Hills Wind Farm Bob Emick enXco V and enXco V Repower Climb Assist Devices GWEC Market Forecast Ports of Entry Satisfy Customers WINDPOWER 2008 Schedule Calendar Seven Principal Financing Structures Used in Utility-Scale Wind Projects Raising Project Funds Through Private Placements The Minnesota Flip Business Model Wind Resource Glossary WT Transmission Corn Plus Coop Adds Wind Energy Wind Resource Maps Ryan Orban, Iberdrola Renewables Liz Cussans, TransAlta Wind Bolton & Menk Trachte Port of Corpus Christi NPPD Interstate Truck Rental & Sales Dr. Shrink Aldridge Electric HYTORC Product Surveys Ad Index

Wind Today - Q2 2008

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