September 19, 2002
The Highmore area is one of two South and North Dakota locations where a proposed $80 million a [sic] wind energy project will be built.
On Monday, Basin Electric Power Cooperative announced that the North Dakota based energy cooperative has reached an agreement with FPL Energy LLC, a subsidiary of FPL Group, Inc. to build an 80-megawatt wind energy project, with 40-megawatts in each of the Dakotas.
The agreement calls for Basin Electric to purchase the output of the projects, which will be constructed, owned and operated by FPL Energy. It is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2003.
The South Dakota project is expected to be located south of Highmore in the service territory of Basin Electric Class A member-owner, East River Electric Power Cooperative of Madison, and its member Dakota Energy Cooperative of Huron.
Electricity produced from these two wind farms will provide enough electricity to serve about 25,000 typical North and South Dakota homes.
Between 40 to 60 wind turbines are projected for each of the two sites. Each tower will be slightly taller than 200 feet, with a 16-foot diameter base. Each turbine will have three blades that will each be approximately 77 feet long.
Each tower will also set on a 40-foot square gravel pad with a 15-foot-wide gravel access road to the towers.
"This project shows we are seeking different ways to provide electricity to supplement the coal and the water now used," said Bob Rademacher of Dakota Energy Cooperative.
He said Dakota Energy Cooperative, which serves customers in Beadle, Hand and Hyde Counties, receives about 50 percent of their energy from Basin Electric.
The electricity generated by the wind turbines in Hyde County will be fed into Basin Electric's grid in Fort Thompson.
The project will benefit Dakota Energy Cooperative because any electricity needed at the wind farms will come from the co-op.
"This is a project we had been hoping for and wanting for a along time," Rademacher said. "We are happy with the effort that Basin Electric has done to make this project with FPL."
Once under construction, the project is expected to provide between 75 to 100 construction jobs for six months. When completed, there will be between four to five full-time operational jobs at the Highmore location.
The project is expected to provide an important economic stimulus to Hyde County. Along with the tax revenue generated from this project, landowners will also be receiving an annual income for the easements they provide for the project, along with the continued use of land for farming and grazing.
The Hyde County project will affect about 10 landowners.
Mike Newton, mayor of Highmore, said the project will be a tremendous boost for Highmore and Hyde County. This will be the first major wind turbine project for South Dakota.
Newton said the project will be located 11 miles south of Highmore near Highway 47.
Along with the wind turbine project, he said a new grain elevator will also be built in Highmore next year.
"This is a tremendous project and we are pleased that we have it," Newton said. "We don't want to take the name 'Windy City' away from Chicago, but we would like to be the little candle that lit up South Dakota."
Ron Harper, CEO of Basin Electric Power Cooperative, said he is pleased that Basin Electric and its Touchstone Energy cooperatives in this region have been able to move forward with the largest wind energy project in the Dakotas.
"This project has come together through a team effort," he said. "Without the close cooperation of the local co-ops, the statewide organizations and the system that they have built throughout the years, this would not have been possible."
Jeff Nelson, general manager of East River, said this new project adds value to the PrairieWinds wind development near Chamberlain.
"As a partner with Basin Electric, East River is pleased to help expand electric supply in the region by use of this major renewable wind resource," Nelson said. "As advocates for renewable energy sources, East River supports Basin Electric and FPL Energy in developing this significant investment in renewable energy in South Dakota."
Basin Electric and East River have also jointly developed the 2.6-MW PrairieWinds wind farm near Chamberlain. It became operational in January of this year. In a related project, Basin Electric and Central Power Electric Cooperative in Minot, N.D., began construction this summer of a 2.6-megawatt wind project south of Minot. It is scheduled to be operational in November of this year.
The North Dakota project is planned near Edgeley, N.D.
"Basin Electric is able to partner in a project such as this because it can integrate wind into its other generating resources," Harper said. "By using energy from this project within the Basin Electric family of cooperatives, we are able to avoid the problems associated with transporting power to large load centers like Minneapolis or Chicago."
He said wind energy has made significant technological strides in the last two decades.
"Member-cooperatives have closely monitored this advancing technology and, as a result, interest in wind development has grown significantly," Harper said. "With completion of the Chamberlain project, the recent announcement of a 2.6-megawatt wind project in cooperation with Central Power Electric Cooperative south of Minot and our commitment to this project, electric cooperatives of this region are again proving they are leaders in implementing new technologies to meet the demands of their consumers."
Michael O'Sullivan, senior vice president of development for FPL Energy, said his company is delighted to be able to add this Dakotas project to the largest wind energy portfolio in the country and are eager to work with Basin Electric Power Cooperative in this new venture.
He said FPL Energy is committed to wind energy generation.
"Wind offers significant environmental benefits, helps us as a nation to diversify our energy sources and uses a resource that is always there to be tapped," he said. "Today's new technologies now make all of this possible on a large-scale basis."
FPL Energy is the nation's leader in wind energy, operating 26 wind facilities in nine states. The company is also a leading independent producer of clean energy from natural gas, solar energy and hydroelectric power, generating more than 80 percent of its power from clean and renewable sources. It has a total of 76 facilities, with more than 10,700 megawatts of capacity in operation, under construction or announced acquisitions in 19 states.
It is a subsidiary of FPL Group, Inc., nationally known as a high quality, efficient and customer-driven organization focused on energy-related products and services. Additional information is available on the Internet at www.fplgroup.com, www.fpl.com and www.fplenergy.com.
Basin Electric is a consumer-owned, regional cooperative headquartered in Bismarck. It generates and transmits electricity to 124-member rural electric systems in nine states: Colorado, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming.
These member systems distribute electricity to about 1.7 million consumers. Additional information is available on the Internet at www.basinelectric.com.
East River Electric Power Cooperative, headquartered in Madison, S.D., is the wholesale electric power supply cooperative serving 21 rural electric cooperatives and one municipal electric system.
South Dakota's 31 electric cooperatives, which include East River and its South Dakota members, serve nearly 100,000 homes and businesses 300,000 people in each of the state's 66 counties.
This article appeared in the September 17, 2002 issue of the Plainsman newspaper - Huron, SD
The announcements discussed herein occurred on September 16, 2002