South Dakota Wind Energy Association
The South Dakota Wind Energy Association (SDWEA) elected a Board of Directors, named an Executive Director and set goals for 2009 at its first official meeting on January 13.
The South Dakota Wind Energy Association (SDWEA) elected a Board of Directors, named an Executive Director and set goals for 2009 at its first official meeting on January 13.
Due to increasing interest in renewable energy and residential-sized wind turbines, this three-day workshop is being offered to provide an opportunity to learn the ins and outs of small wind project development. The timeliness of this workshop complements the growing demand and interest in renewable energy.
Who should attend?
New & existing small wind installers, MN small wind manufacturers, electricians, consultants, PV installers interested in wind and Minnesota Renewable Energy Society members.
The CapX2020 utilities filed a permit on December 29, 2008 for the Brookings County-Hampton 345kV transmission line project at the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission.
As required by law the application contains two route options for the approximately 240-mile transmission line and associated substations. The MN Public Utilities Commission will decide on a route and issue a permit after a public process that includes public input through meetings and hearings.
The permit application is available to view online as well as at one of the following local libraries:
Nominations for Wind Cooperative of the Year for 2008 are now being accepted. All electric cooperatives that are members of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association are eligible, and there is no cost to nominate.
The Wind Cooperative of the Year Award is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy's Wind and Hydropower Technologies Program.
The 2008 winner will be recognized at the NRECA TechAdvantage Conference in New Orleans, La., Feb. 11-14, 2009. All nominations are due by close of business on Jan. 5th, 2009.
The Northern Maine Community College has announced approval of a wind power technology program on its campus. The program is designed to train wind power technicians to operate, maintain and repair wind turbine generators.
Initial courses are expected to start early next year, with the full program available next fall. You can read the press release here.
On Thursday, September 4, the Women of Wind Energy (WoWE) Minnesota Chapter visited the Grand Meadow Wind Farm located about 27 miles southwest of Rochester. The Grand Meadow Wind Farm will be the first wind farm owned and operated by Xcel Energy in the state of Minnesota. The project consists of 67 1.5 Megawatt GE turbines and will generate enough energy for 33,000 Minnesota homes. The ladies of WoWE were fortunate enough to visit the wind farm during a day of construction, allowing them to watch as a crane slowly assembled the wind turbines.
Thank you to all of our partners and volunteers for making the Wind Energy Center at the Minnesota State Fair a great success! Some highlights from 2008:
We couldn't do it without our partners! Thank you to everyone who helped us bring the Wind Energy Center to hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans in 2008!
Fagen, Inc.
KidWind
OwnEnergy
Carstensen Contracting, Inc.
Fulbright and Jaworski LLP
National Wind, LLC
Rural Energy Development Initiative
Winkelman's Environmentally Responsible Construction
Mortenson Construction
Consulting Engineers Group
Southwest Windpower
Bergey Windpower
Faegre & Benson LLP
Jeffrey C. Paulson and Associates, Ltd.
Fryberger, Buchanan, Smith and & Frederick PA
HDR, Inc.
RES Americas Inc.
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
We had over 100 volunteers and more than 350,000 visitors during the twelve days of the fair. Stay tuned for next year's opportunities and in the meanwhile, enjoy some photos!
The United States Department of Agriculture ("USDA") is seeking comments from the public on its proposed strategic goals and planning priorities for climate change research, education and outreach programs.
As Ray Hammarlund, director of energy programs at the KCC, explained to CEP, the grant money will be used to help rural Kansas entities apply for existing federal funds to implement renewable energy and energy efficiency projects. The focus will be applying for CREBS and 9006 grants.
The passage of the Next Generation Energy Act of 2007 by the Minnesota State Legislature and Tim Pawlenty requires a study of the potential for dispersed renewable generation statewide. The study consists of two parts, Phase I and Phase II, which focus on installing a total of 1200MW of new dispersed renewable energy projects with a minimal impact on the transmission grid. As determined by the legislation, project sizes under consideration are limited to between 10 and 40MW.