May 26, 2011
Ohio

Lorain County joins revenue-sharing agreement for wind power

Written by Kim Wendel, WKYC-TV, www.wkyc.com 25 May 2011

LORAIN – The Lorain County Commissioners approved a revenue-sharing agreement associated with submerged land leases in Lake Erie on Wednesday.

Lorain County joins Lake, Ashtabula and the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Port Authority, acting on behalf of Cuyahoga County, in passing a resolution to share revenues collected from offshore wind turbine installations.

The current goal is to install 5 GE wind turbines in Lake Erie by 2013 in Cuyahoga County waters.

Lorain County and the three counties listed above are partners with NorTech and The Cleveland Foundation in the Lake Erie Energy Development Corporation or LEEDCo.

This submerged land lease agreement projects 5-8 turbines installed in Cuyahoga County waters over the next five years.

Cuyahoga County receives 40 percent of the revenue, while Lorain, Lake, and Ashtabula counties will receive 20 percent.

Based on the formula, the estimated revenues for 5 turbines will be $5,500 annually for Lorain County.

Lorain Commissioner Tom Williams stated that “he hopes this revenue sharing agreement will encourage additional cooperation among LEEDCo member counties for the mutual benefit of our respective citizens.”

Lorain Commissioner Lori Kokoski adds “this could create jobs for graduates from the Wind Turbine Technology program at Lorain County Community College.”

Lorain Commissioner Ted Kalo, a LEEDCo Board Member who has been involved with this project before the creation of LEEDCo, has always stated “this is not about installing wind turbines in Lake Erie, it is about creating new industry and jobs for Lorain County and Northern Ohio.”

Lake Erie Energy Development Corporation is a regional non-profit corporation leading efforts to deploy offshore wind projects in Ohio waters of Lake Erie.

Representing Northern Ohio’s public interest in offshore wind, LEEDCo is responsible for assembling a world-class team to develop an initial 20-30 megawatt (MW) offshore pilot project in Lake Erie near Cleveland with a 1,000 MW target by 2020.

Founded in 2009, LEEDCo members include The Cleveland Foundation, NorTech, the City of Cleveland and the Counties of Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Lorain, and Lake.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/05/26/lorain-county-joins-revenue-sharing-agreement-for-wind-power/