Dec 30 - American News (Aberdeen, S.D.)


South Dakota wind energy supporters are urging Congress to establish a national renewable electricity standard they say will lead to less uncertainty about demand, more jobs and a higher likelihood of private investors willing to get involved in projects.

About 10 percent of South Dakota energy comes from the wind -- third most in the country, said Steve Wegman, executive director of the South Dakota Wind Energy Association. When a 99-megawatt wind farm in Day County is completed next year, that number will increase to 13 percent.

Still, the state -- and the nation -- have a long way to go, Wegman said. During a teleconference on Tuesday, several state officials called for a unified renewable electricity standard across the board. The standard would require states to dedicate a certain percentage of their energy production to renewable energy by a given year.

"(This issue) needs to be put on the front burner, high flame," said Richard Morrison, chief executive officer of Molded Fiber Glass Co. in Aberdeen. "...(Establishing a renewable electricity standard) will take the uncertainty out of the market place that currently exists."

Molder Fiber Glass produces blades that are used in wind turbines.

Two federal bills related to the issue are pending in Congress. One would require 6 percent of the energy that companies produce to be renewable by 2012. Another would call for 3 percent of electricity to come from renewable energy by 2011.

That's not enough, Wegman said. Sampson Brown, president and chief executive officer of Knight & Carver Wind Group in Howard, said 20 percent to 25 percent might be a better idea.

"You'll see growth then," Brown said. "You'll see the investment community coming to the table in a big way. You'll see the U.S. move into its rightful place at the head of the line."

Regimen said the biggest challenge to passing a unified standard is coming from the nonwindy, Southern states -- like Alabama, Georgia and Florida. A total of 29 states and the District of Columbia already have established renewable electricity standards. Another five, including South Dakota, have come up with goals. In South Dakota, the goal is to have 10 percent of energy be wind created by 2015 -- a feat the state is already hitting.

"The Southern states don't have a wind resource," Wegman said. "They use coal, nuclear and natural gas."

That's not an issue in South Dakota, where the wind blows hard and often. The state currently has wind farms that produce 305 megawatts of energy.

The 99 additional megawatts are coming in the spring, and Wegman said the state should be at about 1,000 megawatts in the next couple of years. About $500,000 has been invested in wind farms in the last five years, he said.

More wind energy means more jobs, said Greg Von Wald, president of the Mitchell Technical Institute. Last fall, the school started a wind turbine technician program and is graduating about 40 students a year.

The problem is keeping them in the state, Von Wald said. Without a national renewable electricity standard, he worries another state will be getting those employees.

"That means that the kids I train will be exported and not the energy," he said.

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