The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind Energy & Hydrogen Journal

SMALL WIND E-NEWSLETTER April 2006 Issue No. 21, March 29, 2006 Editor: Larry Sherwood, Interstate Renewable Energy Council The current Small Wind Newsletter is also available on the web at http://www.irecusa.org/smallwindenergy/e-newsletter.html . If you have trouble with links in this e-mail message, try the web version of the newsletter. Editor’s Note: The next issue will be July 2006. Article summaries and links follow the Table of Contents. TABLE OF CONTENTS NEWS (1) Wind Turbine Featured in Second Extreme Makeover TV Show (2) 2006 Small Wind State Stakeholders Meeting Scheduled (3) April 10th, Early Registration Deadline for WINDPOWER 2006 (4) Small Wind Turbine Certification (5) USDA Announces Availability of Renewable Energy Funds (6) NEW YORK - NYSERDA Issues New RFP For Renewable Energy (7) OREGON Energy Trust Open Solicitation (8) OREGON Energy Trust Invites Proposals for Locally Owned Wind Projects (9) WISCONSIN - We Energies Announces New Renewable Energy Programs (10) PENNSYLVANIA Announces $8.5 Million for Clean Energy Projects (11) Wind Farmer’s Network Expert Q&A with Trudy Forsyth (12) Upcoming Small Wind Events INTERCONNECTION AND NET METERING (13) COLORADO - PUC Adopts Consensus Net-Metering Rules (14) MASSACHUSETTS - DTE Adopts Revised DG Interconnection Model Tariff (15) WASHINGTON - UTC Seeks Quick Adoption of Interconnection Standards (16) INDIANA - IURC Issues Rules for Three Levels of Interconnection (17) LOUISIANA - PSC Issues Interconnection, Net-Metering Rules INCENTIVES (18) CALIFORNIA - Emerging Renewables (Rebate) Program (19) OHIO - Grants for Renewable Energy (20) WASHINGTON - Okanogan County PUD - SNAP Program RESOURCES (21) COLORADO Announces Small Wind Applications Guide (22) WISCONSIN Wind Turbine Output Estimator (23) MINNESOTA - 2006 Wind-Resource Maps Available (24) COLORADO Releases Two New Economic Development Tools LINKS TO SMALL WIND IN THE NEWS (25) UPI, Wind energy grows through on site turbines (26) Winona (MN) Daily News, Small turbines could blow back into fashion across the U.S. (27) CNET News, ‘Micro’ wind turbines are coming to town (28) Cityview (Des Moines, IA), Power Play (29) Chicago Sun-Times, City planners give wind machines a whirl (30) RenewableEnergyAccess.com, Enertech Breezes Back Into Business. (31) Indian Country News, Solar and wind units bring energy to Navajos INDUSTRY NEWS (32) Earth Turbines Appoints Chief Operating Officer ABOUT THE SMALL WIND NEWSLETTER Includes information on how to subscribe and unsubscribe. NEWS (1) Wind Turbine Featured in Second Extreme Makeover TV Show Southwest Windpower recently donated a wind turbine to the ABC show "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" for a project in Douglas, Kansas. This is the second Extreme Makeover show in which Southwest Windpower has participated. The televised episode aired in January. Full article. (2) 2006 Small Wind State Stakeholders Meeting Scheduled The 4th Annual Small Wind State Stakeholders Meeting will be Tuesday afternoon, June 6 during WINDPOWER 2006 in Pittsburgh. Full article. (3) April 10th, Early Registration Deadline for WINDPOWER 2006 Join the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania June 4-8, 2006, as the Small Wind industry will once again be a prominent feature of WINDPOWER. Full article. (4) Small Wind Turbine Certification Update on effort to develop national hardware certification for small wind turbines. Includes status of the turbine hardware performance standard and an independent certification body. Full article. (5) USDA Announces Availability of Renewable Energy Funds The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Business-Cooperative Service announces the availability of funds for fiscal year (FY) 2006 to purchase renewable energy systems and make energy efficiency improvements for agricultural producers and rural small businesses in eligible rural areas. These funds are through the Farm Bill Section 9006 Program. In 2005, six small wind projects received funding through this program. Full article. (6) NEW YORK - NYSERDA Issues New RFP For Renewable Energy NYSERDA is requesting proposals from companies located in or wishing to locate in New York that will result in new or expanded business in the State to assemble, install, distribute, manufacture, sell and/or service electric renewable energy (RE) technologies including: photovoltaics, (PV), wind power, hydro power, electric energy from waste heat, biomass and biogas, and associated “enabling” technologies such as storage batteries, ultra capacitors, inverters and power conversion devices. Full article. (7) OREGON Energy Trust Open Solicitation Program The Energy Trust's Open Solicitation Program provides an opportunity for renewable resource sponsors to seek Energy Trust assistance with their projects (including small wind projects). Full article. (8) OREGON Energy Trust Invites Proposals for Locally Owned Wind Projects Wind is one of the fastest-growing and most competitively priced renewable resources in the country, and now Oregon communities may seek financial incentives for generating their own electricity. Energy Trust of Oregon, Inc., issued a request for proposals on March 3, 2006, for community wind projects, with capacity up to 10 megawatts. Full article. (9) WISCONSIN - We Energies Announces New Renewable Energy Programs We Energies, Wisconsin’s largest utility, has received authorization from the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW) to significantly expand their renewable energy programs. Included in the PSCW rate case order is net metering for wind turbines between 20 kilowatts and 100 kilowatts in size. Full article. (10) PENNSYLVANIA Announces $8.5 Million for Clean Energy Projects The Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority approved $8.5 million in grants and loans for 25 clean energy projects that will leverage another $144.3 million in private investment. The projects will create 228 permanent and up to 880 construction jobs in the commonwealth. Included are two investments in small wind projects. Full article. (11) Wind Farmers Network Expert Q&A Session with Trudy Forsyth The Wind Farmers Network (a program of Windustry) hosts a series of Expert Question and Answer sessions. The most recent session featured Question and Answers with Trudy Forsyth of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Trudy answered questions about small wind technology, small wind testing, and distributed wind policy and markets. Full article. (12) Upcoming Small Wind Events Listing of upcoming small wind events. INTERCONNECTION AND NET METERING Check the Interstate Renewable Energy Council’s Connecting to the Grid web site for the latest interconnection news. (13) COLORADO - PUC Adopts Consensus Net-Metering Rules Colorado has become the second U.S. state to adopt net-metering rules for renewable-energy systems up to two megawatts (MW) in capacity. Colorado's rules, issued by the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) December 15, 2005, were required by Amendment 37, a ballot initiative approved by state voters in November 2004. Furthermore, the PUC also adopted interconnection standards that closely track the standards developed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in Order 2006, issued in May 2005. Full article. (14) MASSACHUSETTS - DTE Adopts Revised DG Interconnection Model Tariff enera The Massachusetts Department of Telecommunications and Energy (DTE) has issued an order adopting a revised model tariff for the interconnection of distributed generation (DG). The original model tariff, developed by the Massachusetts Distributed Generation Collaborative (DG Collaborative), was approved by the DTE in February 2004. The revised model is based on subsequent recommendations by the DG Collaborative related to the interconnection process, meter ownership, network interconnection and the role of DG in distribution planning, and on public comment submitted on these findings. Full article. (15) WASHINGTON - UTC Seeks Quick Adoption of Interconnection Standards Staff of the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) have completed a discussion draft of interconnection standards for generators up to 25 kilowatts (kW) in capacity. The draft regulations are based on comments received by the UTC regarding the commission's August 2005 Preproposal Statement of Inquiry (CR-101) to consider establishing interconnection standards for systems up to 20 megawatts (MW), and on a joint proposal by the state's investor-owned utilities and a broad group of public utilities to establish standards for systems up to 25 kW as quickly as possible. Full article. (16) INDIANA - IURC Issues Rules for Three Levels of Interconnection The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) has issued final rules governing the interconnection of distributed generation to the facilities of the state's investor-owned utilities. Indiana's new interconnection rules, which are similar to New Jersey’s interconnection rules, require utilities to provide three levels of interconnection to customer-generators. In addition, the IURC modified the state's rules for the interconnection of qualifying facilities (QFs) and the state's net-metering rules. Full article. (17) LOUISIANA - PSC Issues Interconnection, Net-Metering Rules The Louisiana Public Service Commission (PSC) has issued rules for net metering and the interconnection of net-metered systems (Docket No. R-27558). Louisiana's rules, approved November 30, 2005, are based largely on those in place in Arkansas, but they include a significantly improved provision for the treatment of net excess generation (NEG). Unfortunately, the rules also include provisions that may result in high costs for customer-generators. Full article. INCENTIVES New Incentives reported by the Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy (DSIRE), a comprehensive source of information on state, local, utility, and selected federal incentives that promote renewable energy. To access state-by-state incentives and policies that promote wind energy technologies, click here and select "wind" from the drop-down menu. (18) CALIFORNIA - Emerging Renewables (Rebate) Program The Emerging Renewables Program (ERP) provides incentives for the purchase of four types of grid-connected renewable energy generating systems - photovoltaics, solar thermal electric systems, fuel cells using renewable fuels and small wind turbines. Beginning January 1, 2006, the rebate amounts for wind are as follows: Wind: $2.50/W for first 7.5 kW and $1.50/W for increments >7.5 kW up to 30 kW Full article. (19) OHIO - Grants for Renewable Energy The Ohio Department of Development's Office of Energy Efficiency (OEE) offers grants to support the implementation of certain types of energy projects, including distributed energy resources (DER), renewable-energy projects and energy-efficiency projects. Grant funding is provided by the Energy Loan Fund (ELF), Ohio's public benefits fund. To qualify, projects must be located in Ohio and installed in the service territory of one of the four participating electric utilities: Cinergy, American Electric Power, Dayton Power & Light, or FirstEnergy. Full article. (20) WASHINGTON - Okanogan County PUD - SNAP Program Created in October 2004 and modeled after the successful Chelan County Public Utility District program in Washington, Okanogan County PUD's SNAP with net metering program encourages members to install renewable energy generators and connect them to their utility's electrical distribution system by offering an incentive payment based on the system's production on a $/kWh basis. The amount paid by the utility to its renewable energy producers depends on the total amount contributed by OKPUD purchasers through their green pricing program (maximum payment is $1.00/kWh). The production payment is in addition to any net metering credit the producer may receive from the utility. Full article. RESOURCES Click here for archived articles and links to Small Wind Resources. (21) COLORADO Announces Small Wind Applications Guide The Colorado Governor's Office of Energy Management and Conservation (OEMC) announced a new tool, "Small Wind Applications Guide," for landowners interested in harnessing wind energy. Full article. (22) MINNESOTA - 2006 Wind-Resource Maps Available The Minnesota Department of Commerce has posted to its web site a series of updated, high-resolution wind-resource maps. The 2006 maps indicate wind speeds at altitudes of 30 meters, 80 meters and 100 meters, and include estimates of the capacity factor and energy production of a 1.65-megawatt turbine at 80 meters. Full article. (23) WISCONSIN Wind Turbine Output Estimator Find the estimated annual average wind speed at your site, then choose a wind turbine and tower height to get estimated annual turbine outputs. Full article. (24) COLORADO Releases Two New Economic Development Tools Colorado released two strategic studies, "The Handbook on Renewable Energy Financing for Rural Colorado" and "Distributed Wind Generation Study for Northeast Colorado," which provide details on existing projects and discuss the potential of renewables in driving economic development in rural communities. Full article. LINKS TO SMALL WIND IN THE NEWS (25) UPI, March 13, 2006, Wind energy grows through on site turbines. Article on Lorax Energy Systems, LLC. Full article. (26) Winona (MN) Daily News, February 12, 2006, Small turbines could blow back into fashion across the U.S. Full article. (27) CNET News, February 10, 2006, ‘Micro’ wind turbines are coming to town. Article on AeroEnvironment’s turbines, which can be integrated into buildings. Full article. (28) Cityview (Des Moines, IA), February 2, 2006, Power Play. Provides coverage of small wind, net metering, and community wind in Iowa. Full article. (29) Chicago Sun-Times, January 24, 2006, City planners give wind machines a whirl. Plan to install wind turbines on several Chicago city buildings. Full article. (30) RenewableEnergyAccess.com, January 18, 2006, Enertech Breezes Back Into Business. The name EnerTech will once again be seen on new wind turbines. Full article. (31) Indian Country News, March 29, 2005, Solar and wind units bring energy to Navajos. Hybrid wind-solar units provide power for rural Navajos. Full article. INDUSTRY NEWS (32) Earth Turbines Appoints Chief Operating Officer Lawrence Mott, formerly with Northern Power Systems in Waitsfield, Vermont, has become Chief Operating Officer of Earth Turbines, Inc. Full article. ABOUT THE SMALL WIND NEWSLETTER The Small Wind Newsletter is published electronically on a quarterly basis by the Interstate Renewable Energy Council. The Small Wind Web Site contains news, resources, and links. To subscribe, go to http://www.irecusa.org/smallwindenergy/newslettersub.html, fill in the subscription form, and then click on subscribe. There is no fee for subscriptions. If you have comments or news items, please send them to Larry Sherwood at Larry@irecusa.org . Disclaimer: The Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC) does not assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product or process that is referred to or linked to in this newsletter. Reference to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply IREC's endorsement or recommendation. FAIR USE NOTICE This newsletter may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. 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