Search for purchasers leaves wind project short

COLUMBUS — Nebraska Public Power District has commitments for only half the energy it hoped to sell in order to go ahead with a wind energy facility near Broken Bow.
NPPD’s Board of Directors gave contingent approval in August to a proposal to build an 80-megawatt facility east of Broken Bow if purchasers could be found for half the total energy produced there and at a planned 80-megawatt facility near Petersburg.
As of this week, NPPD officials indicated they had verbal commitments for the purchase of just 38 megawatts, short of the 80 megawatts it needs to sell to make both facilities viable.
Rich said NPPD has been in contact with several municipal utilities in the state, as well as public power districts.
“At this point, we have three entities that have verbally spoken for 38 megawatts,” he said.
If additional purchasers are not found for the energy, NPPD will move forward on the Petersburg site, but not the Broken Bow site.
Dave Rich, renewable energy development manager for NPPD, said securing additional purchasers will be “very challenging.” He said the most interest from purchasers came at the beginning of the process, early this fall.
Since then, other entities have not indicated much interest in the projects, Rich said.
“It will be very, very difficult,” Rich said. “At this time, we haven’t seen much positive movement.”
Rich said NPPD intends to make a final decision about the Broken Bow facility at its December board meeting.
“If we don’t have enough participation from Nebraska utilities, the options may be to build a smaller project or to delay this project,” Rich said.
Rich said NPPD could also issue another request for proposals for other sites in the state as it seeks to bring in more renewable energy.
Rich said NPPD has a goal to bring 80 megawatts of renewable energy to its portfolio every other year. That goal will enable the utility achieve its objective of operating with 10 percent new renewable energy by 2020.
“If the decision is to delay the Broken Bow project, I think there’s a desire to use what we all ready have as far as proposed pricing from the developer,” Rich said, regarding a possible future project at Broken Bow.
“But our overall goal is to find low-cost, renewable energy for our customers,” he said. “That is the driving force.”

By MICHELLE ZLOMKE
Chief Managing Editor

Custer County Chief

www.custercountychief.com

19 November 2009

Tags: Wind power, Wind energy

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