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Wind Energy

Legislative Resources

"Re-examining the Production Tax Credit for Wind Power: An Assessment of Policy Options," by C. Ford Runge and Douglas G. Tiffany.
This study considers six different aspects of incentive packages to promote locally based wind energy and concludes that the PTC can be extended for longer periods (6 to 10 years), ending its on-again, off-again character, and accompanied by two- to three-year fiscal impact assessments.
Download PDF

MN Renewable Energy Objective Reports - Minnesota Department of Commerce, January 15, 2005
The Renewable Energy Objective requires each Minnesota electric utility to make a good faith effort to generate or procure electricity generated by renewable technologies with the goal of 10% of electricity being provided by renewable technologies by 2015. This report documents progress toward that goal.

North Carolina Small Wind Initiative at Appalachian State University

Wind Site Evaluation Tools - by Wisconsin's Focus on Energy Program

Transmission - Getting an Interconnection for Wind Power - Scott Hempling and Whitfield A. Russell presentation at AWEA's Global Windpower 2004 conference, March 2004

Windfall from the Wind Farm - Sherman County, Oregon - Renewable Northwest Project, revised December 2004

Minnesota Qualifying Facilities (QF) Report 2004 - MN Department of Commerce, October 2004 [Qualifying Facilities Report 1986-2003 inclusive]

Minnesota Wind Integration Study - September 2004
The Minnesota Legislature required this study. It provides an analysis of adding 1500 MW of wind generation, spread out over hundreds of square miles, to Xcel Energy's electric system.

Transmission line upgrades for wind generation move forward - Xcel Energy Release, September 16, 2004

Catch the Wind - Minnesota's wind-power industry is picking up speed - Minnesota Conservation Volunteer, Nov/Dec 2003

Benefits of Locally Owned Wind Projects - Dan Juhl, DanMar & Associates, Iowa Renewable Energy & Agricultural Conference, November 2003 [Powerpoint presentation]

The Winds of Change - 3 part series from Minnesota Public Radio, September 29, 2003

USDA Announces Over $21 Million to Support Rural Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Efforts - USDA Release, August 25, 2003 [Full List of Grantees]

Designing A Clean Energy Future - A Resource Manual - The Minnesota Project, UofM Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships and MN Dept. of Commerce, July 2003

Characterizing the Impacts of Significant Wind Generation Facilities on Bulk Power System Operations Planning - Xcel Energy Case Study Final Report - prepared by Electrotek for the Utility Wind Interest Group, May 2003

MP3 Audio from July 27, 2004 Meeting in Pipestone [meeting focused on Wind Energy Development]
Comments to Questions from June 29, 2004 Meeting in St. Paul - [hear also MP3 Audio]
Economic Analysis of Windpower Development in Southwestern Minnesota - prepared by DanMar and Associates, September 1996

Xcel Energy's Renewable Development Fund

Second Funding Cycle Evaluation and Selection Report for the Renewable Development Fund - submitted to the MN PUC by Xcel Energy, August 31, 2004 [see also Press Release]

Order Deferring Decision, Allowing Time to Develop Alternative Uses and Requiring Consultation and Report - issued by the MN PUC, In the Matter of the Request of Xcel Energy for Approval of a Renewable Development Fund Oversight Process, August 17, 2004

PUC Staff Briefing Paper - Should the Commission deny the recovery of $1.07 million in grant costs disbursed by Xcel to AnAerobics, Inc. under the terms of a Renewable Development Fund grant contract? - prepared for PUC meeting, August 5, 2004

PUC Order Changing Interjurisdictional Cost Allocations, Establishing a Rate Rider and Removing Renewable Development Fund Expenses From the Fuel Adjustment Clause - issued by MN PUC, June 11, 2004

Should the Commission grant the request to separate the renewable development fund (RDF) costs from the fuel clause adjustment (FCA) by establishing an RDF rate rider? and other questions... - MN PUC Staff Briefing Paper, prepared for PUC meeting May 27, 2004

Order Requiring Credit, Discussion and Reports on Future Credit, Independent Verification and True Up, and Other Filings - in the Matter of Xcel Energy's Renewable Energy Rider, issued by the Public Utilities Commission, September 15, 2003

Wind Energy Resources for Schools and Teachers

The KidWind Project

Wind Energy Just 4 Kids & Teachers - a collection of activities to learn about wind energy, from GE Power Systems

Wind With Miller - a web site for schools (5th Grade and up) with class assignments and a teacher's guide by the Danish Wind Industry Association.

Wind Energy Publications and Miscellaneous Information

The American Wind Energy Association's Wind Power Outlook 2005 - six-page color brochure that provides a status report on the U.S. wind energy market and industry.

Presentations from the Technical Conference on Assessing the State of Wind Energy In Wholesale Electricity Markets - Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, December 1, 2004

Presentations from the Technical conference on Interconnection for Wind Energy and Other Alternative Technologies - Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, September 24, 2004

Evaluating State Markets for Residential Wind Systems - Results from an Economic and Policy Analysis Tool - Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, December 2004

A Comparative Analysis of Business Structures Suitable for Farmer-Owned Wind Power Projects in the United States - Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, November 2004

From Snack Bars to Rebar - How Project Development Boosted Local Businesses Up and Down the Wind Energy 'Supply Chain' in Lamar, Colorado - by Craig Cox for US DOE, March 2004

Economic Impact Analysis of a 20% New Jersey Renewable Portfolio Standard - presentation by the Rutgers Center for Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy, December 2004 [powerpoint]

Green Power Purchasing Guide - US EPA, September 2004

The Influence of Large-Scale Wind Power on Global Climate - The National Academies of Science, November 2004

Smarter, Cleaner, Stronger - Secure Jobs, Clean Environment, and Less Foreign Oil - Redefining Progress, October 2004 [see also MN Fact Sheet]

A Survey of State Clean Energy Fund Support for R&D Projects - Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, October 2004

Renewable Energy - Wind Power's Contribution to Electric Power Generation and Impact on Farms and Rural Communities - Government Accountability Office, September 2004

A Study of Wind Energy Development in Wisconsin - A Collaborative Report - Energy Center of Wisconsin, 2004

Developing Methods to Reduce Bird Mortality in the Altamont Pass Wind Resource Area - California Energy Commission, August 2004

Accelerated Renewable Energy Development Draft Report - California Energy Commission, July 2004

Community Wind Business Plan Summary - Cooperative Development Services, 2004

Midwest Wind Power Projects map - Environmental Law and Policy Center of the Midwest, June 2004

Natural Gas in the New England Region - Implications for Offshore Wind Generation and Fuel Diversity - Department of Energy, June 2004

2004 Wind Producers Survey - American Corn Growers Association, June 2004

The National Wind Resource Guide - A Farmers Guide to Wind Generation Information - by the American Corn Growers Association and the American Corn Growers Foundation, 2004

Owning a PV/Wind Hybrid System - Being Your Own Utility Rezabek Case Study - WI Focus on Energy, May 2004

Wind Force 12 - A Blueprint to Achieve 12% of the World's Electricity From Wind Power by 2020 - European Wind Energy Association, May 2004

Sea Wind Europe - Greenpeace, May 2004

Cash Crop on the Wind Farm - A New Mexico Case Study of the Cost, Price, and Value of Wind-Generated Electricity - Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, April 2004

Putting Renewables to Work - How Many Jobs Can the Clean Energy Industry Generate? - Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, April 2004

Integrating Large Amounts of Wind Energy With a Small Electric Power System - Eric Hirst, April 2004

2004 Global Wind Market Report - AWEA, March 2004

A Survey of State Support for Community Wind Power Development -Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, March 2004

Renewables Work - Job Growth from Renewable Energy Development in the Mid-Atlantic - MaryPIRG Foundation, March 2004

Building a Market for Small Wind - The Break-Even Turnkey Cost of Residential Wind Systems in the United States - by staff at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Presented at Global Windpower, March 2004

Conference Summary of Wind Energy and Rural Development in North Dakota V - held February 18-19, 2004

Austin's Power - Green Power is Clean and Renewable - Outreach Lecture Series, Univ. of Texas, Austin, February 13, 2004

Utility Green Pricing Programs - A Statistical Analysis of Program Effectiveness - Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, February 2004

Utility Green Pricing Programs - Design, Implementation, and Consumer Response - Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, February 2004

Presentations from European Conference for Renewable Energy - Intelligent Policy Options - January 2004

New Energy For America - Apollo Jobs Report - Apollo Alliance, January 2004

Wind Energy Outlook 2004 - AWEA, January 2004

Bird Risk Behaviors and Fatalities at the Altamont Pass Wind Resource Area - National Renewable Energy Laboratory, December 2003

Integrating Wind Energy with Electric Systems - by Eric Hirst, Presented at NPCC Workshop on Wind Energy and Electric Power Systems, Portland, OR, December 2003