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A wind developer is an individual or company that constructs, owns, operates, and manages wind energy systems. Developers essentially act as "middlemen" between landowners who have good wind resources and power suppliers or power marketers who buy electricity. Developers think in term of projects. A project might consist of one turbine or hundreds of them, based on the amount of electricity the developer expects to sell. We would be looking at projects of 25 MW or higher. Wind energy developers try to meet certain criteria when looking for potential wind farm sites. Wind resource, land use, and proximity to the electrical grid are three of the primary considerations.

Because we like the energy business, we decided non-polluting renewable energy sounded great as a new focus. It is difficult to imagine a more attractive business, and because the industry is both young and diffuse, there is a chance to build a significant company. Advances in technology, mean that electricity generated by wind energy is almost competitive in price with natural gas sourced electricity. If one takes into account the environment benefits of a non-polluting energy source, wind is clearly an essential component of a balanced energy policy.

Making a profit is necessity for a business to remain vital and exciting, but it is also exciting when a business has a reason beyond a simple profit motive. Most people who work in renewable energy do so because they care about the environment. The evidence of climate change and the dangers of pollution are now undeniable. There is a pressing need for alternative energy sources if we are to avoid an ecological disaster. It is terrific to work in an industry where a sincere sense of social responsibility prevails. There are businesses that offer the potential for greater monetary rewards. Few, however, combine the possibility of profit with societal improvement on as fundamental a level.

In the past the company has been in the process of screening wind turbine installations sites in New York and Pennsylvania. This would be used to obtain data for estimating the performance and or the economic viability of the sites. In the future, we will be looking to build Wind Farms on those locations.

• Wind is abundant. Scientists estimate that U.S. wind resources can supply more than three times our total electricity needs.
• Wind is clean. While displacing greenhouse gas emissions, using wind also avoids other harmful fossil fuel pollutants such as mercury, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides, making our air and water cleaner and healthier.
• Wind is domestic. Unlike oil and, increasingly, natural gas, wind energy does not need to be imported, and helps to reduce our dependence on foreign countries.
• Wind is inexhaustible. Unlike fossil fuels or uranium, wind energy is renewable and can be used without reducing the birthright of future generations.

Some events in the past few years have made Wind Farming development more feasible.

1. Federal government policy: the federal government provides a tax credit of 1.5 cents per kWh (adjusted for inflation) for electricity generated by a wind plant during its first 10 years of operation. This credit is intended to "level the playing field" for wind, which must complete with other energy industries that receive billions of dollars in federal subsidies each year.
2. State government policy: Several states, as part of electric utility restructuring legislation, have enacted policies to encourage clean energy sources like wind. The state of Texas, for example, has passed a law requiring the construction of 2,000 MW of renewable energy generation by the year 2009, of which wind is expected to capture a major share.
3. Declining cost: the cost of producing electricity from wind energy has declined by more than 80%, from about 38 cents per kilowatt-hour in the early 1980s to a current range of 3 to 6 cents/kWh (levelized over a plant's lifetime). In the not-too-distant future, analyst believe, wind energy costs could fall even lower than most conventional energy sources, reaching a cost of 2.5 cents/kWh.
4. The green power market: As the electricity market becomes more competitive, utilities and other power suppliers are looking for ways to differentiate their products. One of the best ways to do that is to offer "green power"-electricity from clean energy sources like wind-at a premium price. Today, dozens of utilities nationwide are selling wind-generated electricity as part of green power programs, and consumer demand for green power (even though still very small) is beginning to result in the building of new wind power projects like the ones in New York and Pennsylvania. (1)

• Total worldwide wind capacity today is approximately 15,000 MW, enough to generate about 30 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity each year. This is about the same amount of electricity as 4 million average New York households (containing 11 million people) use.
• Wind energy was the world's fastest-growing energy source during most of the 1990s, expanding at annual rates ranging from 25% to 30%. The U.S. wind industry wrapped up a banner year, in which it installed more than twice as much new generating capacity, close to 1,700 MW, as in any previous year (previous record-732 MW in 1999). Growth rates of 20% per year are expected for the next ten years. Wind energy is gaining ground in developed and developing countries alike. In developed countries wind energy is in demand because of its pollution-free qualities. In developing countries its popularity is linked to the fact that turbines can be installed quickly, and they require no subsequent fuel supplies. The wind turbines industry is now a $1.5 billion industry with a bright future.
• U.S. wind potential is vast-many times the amount installed. New York's potential, for example, is conservatively estimated at 5,000 MW of wind capacity. (2)

Here are some of the reasons we choose New York for Wind Farm Development.

Clean Energy Policy Options in New York

Public Benefit Fund: Cost sharing and performance incentives available from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) in recent years have succeeded in attracting at least 30 MW of wind energy generation (of which the Madison project is the first) to western New York. This public support came from a New York Public Service Commission (PSC) order establishing a system benefit charge (SBC) on electricity sales to support energy conservation and renewable energy.

• Wind energy provides both environmental and economic benefits.
• Windy counties in central and western New York can be expected to profit from wind development through:
  1. Tax Payments: Every 100 MW of wind development generates about $1 million in property tax revenue. New York could see 2,000 MW by 2010 with aggressive RPS and SBF policies. This would mean $20 million annually in tax revenues to rural communities.
  2. Jobs: Every 100 MW of wind development creates about 500 job-years of employment. Installation of 2,000 MW in New York would result in 10,000 job-years.
  3. Local services such as: Accounting, banking, equipment rental, purchase of construction materials, equipment, tools and purchase of food, clothing, safety equipment.
  4. Payments to landowners: The development of 2,000 MW in New York would mean annual payments of approximately $4 million to farm and forest landowners.
  5. Stable electricity prices: A recent study (January, 2000) found Iowa's electric utility customers could save over $300 million over a 25-year period if a proposal to meet 10% of the state electric demand through wind energy is adopted. The saving results because the cost of fossil fuels is expected to rise over time, while wind's costs decline.
  6. Reduced emission of pollution and greenhouse gases: a single 660-kW wind turbine will displace emissions of 1,100 tons of carbon dioxide (the leading greenhouse gas), 6 tons of sulfur dioxide (the leading component of acid rain), and 4 tons of nitrogen oxides (the leading component of smog) every year, based on the U.S. average utility fuel mix. 375 acres (more than half a square mile) of forest would be needed to absorb the same amount of CO2. (3)
  Also, Indirect Economics Effects
  1. Indirect and induced jobs, income and output. (Induced effect refers to the wages spent on goods and services in the local economy by the people who are directly and indirectly employed by the construction and operation of the wind facilities).
  2. Regional impacts of additional government spending on local, state, and federal services as a result of increased tax revenue.
  3. Diversification of state and county economic bases.

The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) praised New York Governor George Pataki (R) for his recent decision to require state agencies to buy substantial amounts of renewable energy to meet their electric power needs.

Gov. Pataki issued an Executive Order requiring all agencies of New York State, including the New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority, to purchase 10% of their electricity from renewable energy sources by 2005 and 25% by 2013. AWEA said the announcement would create the first stable, long term markets for retail sales of wind energy in New York State.

Said AWEA Executive Director Randall Swisher, " Wind energy is ready, today, to supply substantial amounts of electricity in the Empire State. The First New York wind projects are in place and operating well, and there is enough windy land for many more-enough to power nearly 2 million homes. Nationally, we believe that wind energy can provide 6% of the U.S. electricity requirements by 2010. Gov. Pataki's announcement, the largest state renewable energy procurement commitment in U.S. history, should give wind power a tremendous boost."

State agencies and authorities in New York require approximately 630 megawatts of electric power. David Wooley, Director of AWEA's Northeast State Policy Project, said Pataki's initiative " is expected to result in approximately 165 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year of renewable energy sales to state agencies by 2005 and 330 million kWh by 2010. The 2010 purchase requirement-enough to serve about 40,000 homes-is the equivalent of the annual production from about 130 MW of installed wind energy capacity. We are very happy with the announcement and expect that wind will supply at least three-quarters of the renewable electricity purchases for the state agencies."

Contact Information: Scott C. Baltazar/Vice President (914) 523-7866

1. American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), Information Supplement, Background Information About Wind Energy In the U.S. And The World. 2001
2. American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), Information Supplement, Background Information About Wind Energy In the U.S. And The World. 2001
3. American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), Information Supplement, Background Information About Wind Energy In the U.S. And The World. 2001