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RENEW Wisconsin Newswire - August 15, 2003
Permit Issued for Locally Owned Wind Turbines
EDEN, WI -- The pioneering concept of locally owned wind generation in Wisconsin came closer to birth with a town board’s approval of a two-turbine project in Fond du Lac County.
The Town of Eden Zoning Board of Appeals in mid-August approved Eden Renewable Energy, LLC’s application to build two commercial wind turbines on two farms about eight miles southeast of the city of Fond du Lac. The two farms are located about six miles northeast of We Energies’ two turbines in the Town of Byron, also in Fond du Lac County.
The Zoning Board of Appeals approved the Special Use Permit for twenty years on a 5-0 vote.
Eden Renewable Energy, LLC is a local business whose two principals, Mike and Ed Koffman, live in the Town of Eden. Under this business model, the Koffmans retain control of the generating asset, while outside investors, who can capitalize on the tax credits available to windpower, receive the majority of the revenues during the project’s first 10 years. After the 10th year, when the tax credits expire, the project’s entire revenue stream will flow to the Koffmans.
Ed Ritger, a Random Lake attorney and sustainable energy practitioner, represents the local company, as well as the Addison Wind Energy, LLC, which has an application pending before the Washington County township to site a single turbine on property owned by his parents.
With the granting of the Special Use Permit, the next step for Eden Renewable Energy is to negotiate a power purchase agreement with We Energies. Though Eden Renewable has a verbal agreement from We Energies to purchase the output from the turbines, it needs to enter into a formal contract with the utility before it can secure bank loans and other financing.
In any event, project construction would not begin until the federal Production Tax Credit for windpower is reauthorized. Current legislation passed by both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate would extend this tax credit another three years, until December 31, 2006. If Congress passes the comprehensive energy package in the next three months, the turbines could be installed and placed into service before next summer.
The application envisions installing two NEG Micon 1.65 MW turbines, which would sit atop 80-meter towers and have a rotor diameter of 82 meters. Their total height would be 397 feet above grade. At the two approved sites, these turbines should produce about 7,000,000 kilowatt-hours a year. The turbines will be connected to a 24.9 kV distribution line that runs along County Highway V.
Eden Renewable Energy initially proposed installing seven turbines in the township, but the project had to be reduced in size due to limitations imposed by the distribution system in the area. After the original hearing, which took place in April, We Energies determined that the output from the seven turbines would exceed nighttime loads in the area served by the nearest substation. A combination of strong winds and low electricity demand would force We Energies to direct that power into the transmission system, which results in added operational complexity and costs. To prevent these situations from occurring, the developer decided to scale back the amount of installed capacity. Ironically for the Koffmans, it meant forgoing turbines that they had intended to place on their property.
After the meeting, Ritger expressed an interest in pursuing financial assistance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture when the next round of Section 9006 moneys is offered to eligible applicants. Having a siting permit in hand would enhance Eden Renewable’s prospects of securing a grant or loan guarantees.
Project principal Mike Koffman attributed the Board’s thumbs-up to the steady flow of communications between the applicants, the Town Attorney, and the Town Chair, which enabled the parties to resolve issues ahead of the meeting. “These discussions helped us smooth out the rough spots in the application and helped them see the value of this project,” Koffman said.
For more information contact: Michael Vickerman at RENEW Wisconsin. Phone: 608.255.4044
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