Dateline: November 23, 2006

CPV eyes Donley for wind farm

Donley County could become home to a new multi-million dollar wind farm if a Maryland company’s plans become reality.

Representatives of Competitive Power Ventures, Inc., (CPV) met with several local boards last week to outline their project and lay the groundwork for requesting abatement of property taxes.

“I think people are excited to see the possibilities for the Panhandle winds,” said CPV Corporate and Project Development Director Paul Wendelgass. “I think it is a real good project for the area.”

The project will cost between $125 and $135 million with between $83 and $93 million of that being invested in Donley County. The farm is expected to create 10 fulltime jobs for electricians, turbine engineers, and power plant management.

Wendelgass said his company hopes to have the plant up and running by late 2007 or early 2008.

About two-thirds of CPV’s 85.5 megawatt wind farm would be located in Donley County, Wendelgass said. The remaining portion would be in Gray County, but the entire farm will be located near Interstate 40 on the Trew Ranch owned by Don and Delbert Trew and their spouses.

A total of 57 GE wind turbines would generate 1.5 megawatts each, with 39 of those turbines in Donley County. Each turbine tower would be 262 feet tall from the ground to the nacelle (where the blades attach), and the three blades would each be 120 feet long.

Winds as slow as nine miles per hour would start the turbines. They would ramp up to reach peak production at wind speeds of 30 mph, and safety measures cause them to shut down when the wind gets up to 56 mph.

Electricity from the farm would connect to the power grid at Xcel Energy’s Kirby Substation west of Lake McClellan over a new transmission line constructed by CPV, Wendelgass said.

Where the power goes after that will be determined by what area needs power at any particular time. Likely customers will be AEP, Xcel Energy, and the Golden Spread Rural Electric Cooperatives.

Sending power downstate is a hurdle for wind generation in the Panhandle, Wendelgass said.

“Transmission capability is a challenge,” he said. “The lines in this area generally go north and east instead of south where the big demand is.”

Wendelgass and Dale Cummings met last week with Donley County Commissioners, the Clarendon Board of Aldermen, the Clarendon Economic Development Board, the Clarendon College Board of Regents, the Clarendon ISD Board of Trustees, and the Donley County Hospital Board.

CPV, which is based in Braintree, Maryland, will be requesting tax abatements from the county, hospital district, and college district; and the Clarendon EDC will be asked to help facilitate those abatements. CISD is being asked to consider Chapter 313 property value limitations in lieu of a tax abatement. Each entity should ultimately benefit from increased tax revenue.

“We’re looking at several months to get all this done,” said County Judge Jack Hall. “We’re just in the proposal stage. We’re very interested, and we’re being very encouraging.”

Wendelgass said his company has been well received by local officials, but he said there are still several tasks to perform for the project to become a reality. CPV must get formal approval of the tax abatements, secure agreements with property owners for a transmission line right of way, and pursue agreements with power markets, he said.

“We’re very excited to work with the Trews and all the folks in the area to bring this project to the finish line,” Wendelgass said.

CPV is unrelated to the Irish-based firm Airtricity, which, the Amarillo Globe-News reported this month, is planning another wind farm east of Groom, part of which might be located in Donley County.