May 9--LAWTON -- Atop Slick Hills, a rocky outcrop north of here, scores of wind turbines turned beneath an overcast sky.

The tip of each blade whipped through the haze, disappearing for a moment in the dark clouds above with each rotation.

The acrobatic dance was being performed by Oklahoma's newest wind farm, known as Blue Canyon II. The 151.2-megawatt facility, which began commercial production in December, was built for customers of AEP-PSO, the chief supplier of electricity in the Tulsa area and the state's largest wind power provider.

"This thing is cranking out enough electricity for a small city," said Michael Skelly of Houston-based Horizon Wind Energy, Blue Canyon's owner and operator.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony held Monday marked the wind farm's official opening.

At the beginning of 2003, Oklahoma didn't have a wind farm. The state has several now, ranking fifth in wind power capacity with 475 megawatts.

Nearly two-thirds of that capacity belongs to American Electric Power-Public Service Company of Oklahoma.

The state has invested fast and hard in wind-generated electricity. More wind power development in Oklahoma is almost certain, Skelly said.

"We are well on our way to a $1 billion investment in wind," he said.

Blue Canyon II consists of 84 giant wind turbines. They're 350 feet tall and generate up to 1.8 megawatts each.

Blue Canyon II is AEP-PSO's second wind farm project. The Weatherford Wind Energy Center, which was completed last summer, was the utility's first wind farm.

Together, the two facilities can produce up to 298 megawatts of wind-generated electricity, a small percentage of AEP-PSO's total generation capacity -- 4,000 megawatts.

But wind power is a more viable alternative today because of improvements in technology and higher natural gas prices, said AEP- PSO President Stuart Solomon. What's more, it's a clean, renewable form of energy, he said.

"We knew it made sense when we started it," Solomon said. "It makes even more sense now as gas prices have gone up."

AEP-PSO acquired the power from Blue Canyon II under a 10-year contract with Horizon.

"It's not going to raise rates one bit," Solomon said.

Blue Canyon I, a 74-megawatt facility, provides power to Western Farmers Electric Cooperative, which serves 19 rural electric utilities.

Last year, more than 2,400 megawatts of wind power capacity was built in the United States, a record high. An additional 3,000 megawatts is expected to be built this year, the American Wind Energy Association estimates.

Higher natural gas prices and a federal tax credit for wind power production have encouraged wind power developers. But wind power is growing primarily because more energy-conscious Americans are demanding it, said Horizon CEO Alec Dreyer.

"There's a moral fiber to it," Dreyer said. "People want to do good things for the environment."

AEP-PSO provides electricity to about 510,000 Oklahoma customers, including 285,000 in the Tulsa area.

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Russell Ray 581-8380russell.ray@tulsaworld .com