Tax Credit Energizes
Wind Farms
August 23, 2005 — By Tom Dochat, The Patriot-News
John Hanger doesn't find much to like
in the new energy bill signed recently by President Bush, but he
applauds the tax credits offered to wind-energy producers. Hanger
believes the number of wind farms in Pennsylvania could double -- maybe
even triple -- by the end of 2007.
Pennsylvania has five wind farms and two others under development, said
Hanger, president and CEO of Citizens for Pennsylvania's Future. The
state's existing wind farms produce enough electricity to supply 40,000
homes, he noted.
"I'd be disappointed if we don't have at least 14 [wind farms] by the
end of 2007," he said, adding that he expects "substantial' development
of wind energy nationwide, as well.
The tax credit, extended through the end of 2007, is "the largest period
of certainty that wind energy has had," Hanger said. "That's very
positive."
Brent Alderfer is president of Community Energy Inc. in Wayne. He said
he expects a "two-year rush" in developing wind energy to take advantage
of the tax credit. He would have preferred a longer time.
The energy bill, Alderfer said, "did not take the next step to allow the
industry to build a long-term future." At the same time, he conceded
that the extension of the credit "gets the industry back in gear after
being stalled for more than a year."
Pennsylvania aims to be in the forefront in wind-energy resources. To
that end, it achieved its biggest coup last year when Gamesa Corp. of
Spain, the world's second-largest wind-energy producer, said it would
locate its U.S. headquarters and East Coast development offices in
Philadelphia.
Earlier this year, Gamesa added to its state commitment when it decided
to build a plant near Ebensburg, Cambria County, to construct generator
blades for wind turbines.
The Philadelphia offices and Ebensburg plant are expected to create
about 1,000 jobs over the next five years.
Gamesa officials could not be reached for comment on the energy bill
because of the traditional August vacation period in many European
countries.
Linda Thomson, president of Johnstown Area Regional Industries, said the
170,000-square-foot Ebensburg plant is under construction, and Gamesa
hopes to begin some production by the beginning of 2006. Some
management-related jobs at the plant have been filled, but hiring of
production workers won't be done until this fall, she said. The plant is
expected to employ 234 people.
In Philadelphia, a downtown office has been set up by Gamesa, and about
80 people are working there, according to Eugene DePasquale, deputy
secretary for community revitalization and local government support at
the state Department of Environmental Protection. "That is coming along
very well," he said.
Gamesa has a partnership with St. Francis University in Loretto to
develop wind farms in Somerset, Cambria and Blair counties. The
university also is creating a wind-energy career-development program,
DePasquale said.
Clean energy, such as electricity generated by the wind, is a top
priority of the Rendell administration, DePasquale said. The federal
energy bill "helps maintain the viability of the wind industry," he
added.
Pennsylvania wants nearly 20 percent of its energy to come from clean,
renewable sources by 2018. Half of that should come from wind, he said.
The five wind farms in the state produce 129 megawatts of electricity,
Hanger said. That places Pennsylvania 11th among the states in
wind-energy generation, but first among states east of the Mississippi
River, according to the American Wind Energy Association.
Community Energy was formed in 1999 to market electricity generated by
the wind in the Mid-Atlantic region and has since expanded its
territory. It's developing wind farms in Pennsylvania and New Jersey
that should be online by December.
The Pennsylvania project, called Bear Creek in the Wilkes-Barre area,
has a 20-year agreement to sell electricity to PPL Corp. The plant will
be capable of generating 24 megawatts of electricity, or 2 megawatts
from each of the 12 turbines, Alderfer said.
Alderfer said the company has three other Pennsylvania projects in the
early stages of development, with completion scheduled for 2007. It
generally takes two to three years for a wind farm to be developed.
"Some are longer," he said. "I don't know any that are shorter."
Hanger sees a bright future for wind energy in Pennsylvania, citing the
Gamesa commitment and a General Electric plant in Erie that makes
components for its wind turbines. "That's just the beginning," he said.
And Hanger is helping the cause. His business, known as PennFuture, uses
clean energy at its offices in Harrisburg, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.
"Most of it is wind," he said.
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Source: Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News |