How communities can establish wind plants

An emerging group of wind-farm developers are focusing on midsized projects and in places that traditional, large-scale developers are overlooking. These community wind projects, ranging from 5 to 80 MW, are cropping up in part due to recent financial incentives and guidance from firms such as OwnEnergy, based in Brooklyn, NY. “Several converging factors make community wind projects viable,” says OwnEnergy Founder and CEO Jacob Susman. “First is transmission capacity.  This is an opportunity for smaller projects to tap into existing transmission infrastructure, avoiding the need for costly new upgrades. Also, as the industry matures, people in local communities are looking for more involvement, control, and a financial stake in a project; more than just the land lease they may be offered by an “absentee” developer. Finally, banks are now more interested in making relatively small loans as little as $20 million for a community wind project compared to the large investment necessary for traditional wind development. The industry is now saying that ‘small is the new big’.”

Susman says his company’s role is to identify a local partner or entrepreneur, someone who lives in the community or has ties there, and preferably someone who is a significant land owner in the project footprint. “Then we form a joint venture with the local partner. For example, partners in Kay County Oklahoma, a father and son team with property in the footprint can count several generations in the area. Their land will be used in the project along with neighbors’ land. That arrangement brings sensitivity to projects. Our role is to make the project work for everyone in the community.”

An island community off Maine provides another example of community wind, developed by Fox Islands Wind LLC. “Instead of importing power from the mainland on a cable, they generate it themselves. They decided to install three wind generators, and then structured the power, financing, procurement contracts as a community with an entrepreneurial person at the lead. A development company such as ours is in the lead so all members have an ownership stake,” says Susman.

Wind projects roughly develop in three stages. The early stage involves feasibility and gathering land for the project, getting a wind assessment of the property, and steps such as getting in the transmission queue. ”A lot of the early effort is local, a good amount of that is done by the local partner. We provide the documentation he would take around to the community. We would do the feasibility work, site assessment to figure out the size, make sure we are not in areas of endangered habitat, on whose property the turbines would be placed, and how it would connect to the grid,” he says.

The middle development phase is outsourced. It includes studies around transmission and permitting, and continuing the wind resource work by a third party, and OwnEnergy typically manages the third parties with input from the local partner. That person might be working with the community dealing with the land owners, and getting county tax abatement for the locals. If anyone in the community is not comfortable with the project, the third party works with that person. The final stage signs up contractors and gets the project ready for financing by wind energy lenders and tax-equity firms

Steps in Wind Development

Step 1: Land acquisition

Land is secured through option and lease agreements with the landowners.

Step 2: Wind resource assessment

One or more meteorological towers—which measure the onsite wind speed, direction, pressure and temperature—are installed. The developer needs to collect at least one to two years of this extremely valuable data prior to financing the project.

Step 3: Transmission and interconnection

After an initial interconnection application, the transmission owner or operator will conduct a series of studies to assess the feasibility to connect at a certain point of interconnection (POI), and ultimately offer an interconnection agreement to the generator. This process may last more than a year, depending on the transmission zone.

Step 4: Environmental studies and permitting

The developer must determine which permits are required and which environmental studies are needed to satisfy federal, state, and local rules and regulations. It is important that this is done early on.

Step 5: Power purchase agreement

This primary asset will dictate the economics of the project, as well as its financing outcome.

NOTE: These five distinct aspects are not necessarily sequential; however, there is a degree of dependency that must be followed for a successful outcome.

Coalition plans 20 MW community wind project

A developer of community wind, OwnEnergy, has entered a partnership with The National Farmers Union Service Association to develop a 20 MW wind energy project in Minnesota. “The Rothsay Wind Energy project will create local jobs and stimulate economic development in the community,” says OwnEnergy CEO Jacob Susman. “The project, in Otter Tail County, Minnesota, will also provide clean, locally-generated power to about 6,000 homes.” The project will soon enter the Midwest ISO Definitive Planning Phase and use Tier 1 turbines to ensure project financing. The project footprint includes property from six landowners, and will require minimal permitting in addition to the state required PUC permit.

Community wind projects provide farmers with an opportunity to generate a portion of their own electricity, create additional revenue for their family and community, and expand sources of clean, renewable energy for the country.

OwnEnergy, Brooklyn, N.Y., has more than 1,000 MW under development across 14 U.S. states. The company partners with landowners, farmers, and local entities to jointly develop utility-scale wind projects ranging from 10 to 80 MW. The projects help to create local jobs, spur economic growth and provide communities with clean, renewable sources of energy that they can call their own.

225-kW Aeronautica turbine aims at community wind

Turbine developer Aeronautica Windpower, Plymouth, Mass, says the wind industry has been looking for a turbine that produces more than 100 kW, without having to go to the size or expense of a 600 or 700 kW machine. The Aeronautica 29-225, one solution to the problem, can generate 225 kW yet sit on a 40-m monopole tower. The stall-regulated wind turbine will fit on many suburban and urban properties. Its simplicity of design provides a reliable and cost effective turbine for commercial, industrial or municipal needs. Erection and transport is by common equipment. There are about 365 turbines of this sort installed in Denmark, the U.S., Germany, and Sweden.

Small and Community Wind Conference, Nov 3 to 5, 2009 Detroit

An AWEA sponsored conference and exhibition called AWEA Small and Community Wind will be held in Detroit, Mich., November 3 to 5, 2009. Join wind industry leaders, new entrants to the industry, project developers, economic development groups, municipalities, land owners and other allied organizations to formulate and enact growth strategies for small and mid-sized wind applications. This event is an opportunity to learn practical ways to make money, save money, and be more energy independent

Small and Community Wind Conference & Exhibition will show how wind equipment can generate renewable electricity to power homes, farms, ranches, businesses, rural electric cooperatives, and municipal utilities. Attendee registration will open in the coming weeks, so bookmark www.smallandcommunitywindexpo.org and check back soon.

The Small and Community Wind Conference & Exhibition will feature a hall filled with exhibitors who have state of the art equipment that will draw business attendees and consumers. The exhibit hall will also feature a technology-presentation stage where exhibitors can spend a few minutes discussing their products and services with attendees. Exhibitors will include:

• Turbine manufacturers
• Tower manufacturers
• Inverter and battery manufacturers
• Wind, solar, and other hybrid system manufacturers, vendors, and
• Consultants, component suppliers, construction companies, and more.