Let the Wind BlowConsortium Promotes Wind Industry Possibilities

To say that wind farms have a positive economic impact on local communities is to state the obvious. The three wind farms in Pecos County have created permanent jobs, initialized the development of a local industrial park, and increased the tax base.
What hasn’t been so obvious with regard to Texas and the wind industry is the potential of even greater revenue. The West Texas Wind Energy Consortium, organized in January of this year, has taken on the task of unveiling this potential to not only local communities, but also the state, national and international wind industry.
“Now is the time for West Texans to join together to maximize our common economic interests in this important industry,” said Greg Wortham, executive director of the West Texas Wind Energy Consortium at its first official meeting conducted in January.
What does Wortham mean by “maximize?” Consider the following: Taylor County is home to Zoltek, a factory that used to make carbon fiber for aircraft fuselages until the contract was sold to a manufacturer in Europe. On the verge of closing down, the factory was reinvigorated when asked to produce carbon fiber for wind turbine blades. Interestingly, the factory and some 120 workers are within sight of Taylor County’s wind turbines.
Once produced, the carbon fiber is shipped to a wind turbine blade production plant owned by Gamesa Energy in Reading, Pa. The finished blades are then loaded onto trucks and transported back across the country – through Pittsburgh, Chicago, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Kansas City, etc. – with some of these blades ending up right back in West Texas.
That true-life scenario begs the question that Wortham is asking county leaders, legislators and industrial representatives across the state: Why can’t we build everything we need right here in Texas?
The feasibility of this approach is demonstrated by the turbine towers, many of which are made from industrial parts manufactured throughout Texas, then assembled and warehoused in West Texas.
“Why are we going thousands of miles away to make blades from local parts?” Wortham asked. “Ninety percent-plus of the wind turbines in the United States are installed in West Texas. The blades are built somewhere else and then shipped right back here.”
The West Texas Wind Energy Consortium was created in part to help answer this question. The consortium is comprised of landowners, taxing entities, utilities, wind energy developers, attorneys, chambers of commerce, construction companies, and product and service suppliers.
The group conducted its first Annual West Texas Wind Energy Trade Fair July 12 at the Trent school located on the Nolan/Taylor county line. Some 200 attended the fair at the school, which was built in part with tax revenue generated by the nearby Trent Mesa Wind Farm.
The consortium’s mission is twofold: educate the region about the industry and educate the industry about the region, Wortham said.
“Part of the reason we set up the consortium is so that the industry will understand that West Texas is where this is happening,” he continued.
The West Texas region is projected to contain more than 25 percent of U.S. wind energy by the end of this year. In fact, experts predict that West Texas will surpass California this year as the North American leader in operational wind capacity.
By the end of 2005, West Texas will have roughly 2,400 megawatts of electricity capacity from approximately 2,000 wind turbines, Wortham said.
Once viewed as cost prohibitive, the continual technological upgrades to wind turbines and the rise in fossil fuel prices have brought the cost of wind-generated electricity in line with other power sources.
In addition, the 79th Texas Legislature passed a law requiring Texas utilities to get an additional 5,880 megawatts of their power from renewable resources such as wind and solar power by 2015.
The ball is rolling in the West Texas region thanks to three primary factors: wind, room, and electrical transmission lines. Take Taylor County, for instance. Last year, the county housed one turbine, Wortham said. By the end of this year, the landscape will include more than 300 such turbines.
“We have been blessed in Taylor County with good winds and mesas,” said County Judge George A. Newman, a member of the consortium’s board of directors.
Taylor County has worked closely with the three wind energy companies that have a presence in the county: SeaWest (now AES), Florida Power and Light and AEP.
“We have negotiated abatement agreements with each of the companies based on their own merits,” Newman said.
While parts of West Texas (Trans Pecos, Panhandle, and Permian Basin) have short-term limitations with regard to electric transmission lines, the Rolling Plains region of West Texas contains substantial electric transmission capacity, enough to accommodate a growing industry, Wortham said. Moreover, the Texas Legislature has directed the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) to develop comprehensive transmission upgrades for all of West Texas in order to export wind energy to metro markets.
“We are fortunate to have three high-voltage transmission lines in Nolan County,” said County Judge Tim Fambrough. If the transmission lines reach their capacity, the company is mandated by the PUC of Texas to “reconductor” their lines in order to maintain enough capacity for all renewable energy produced in the county.
“So really, we have an unlimited future for wind generation in Nolan County, for which we are very thankful,” Fambrough said.
The judge anticipates continued growth and expansion of wind generators due to the existing federal tax credit and demand for renewable energy.
The gap left in property values due to the steady decrease in oil and gas production has been more than filled by Nolan County’s wind turbines, Fambrough said. The county currently houses 352 wind turbines either in operation or under construction. The operational generators will produce 502 megawatts of electricity.
“Construction on the projects also has been an economic boom for us because of the construction workers and associated purchases, which have been a tremendous benefit,” Fambrough said.
Runnels County Judge Marilyn Egan is eager for her county – which does not yet house any wind turbines – to share in this type of boom.
“We are diligently seeking the location of wind turbines in Runnels County for the economic benefit it will bring to the county,” Egan said. “It will bring income to the landowners on whose land the wind turbines are located, possibly create a few jobs for local people, and will increase the tax base for all taxing entities in the jurisdictions where the wind turbines are located.”
When Egan first explored the possibility of wind farms in Runnels County, she was told there was not enough wind. The commissioners court pressed on, attending the West Texas Wind Energy Trade Fair in Taylor County July 12. Egan invited representatives from wind energy companies to Runnels County to gather data.
“There are transmission lines located in adjoining counties which are close enough to make it economically feasible for wind turbines to be located in portions of Runnels County,” Egan maintained.
At press time, Egan was preparing for a meeting with community leaders to assess the situation and discuss what additional measures the county can take to lure this valuable industry.
For more information on the wind industry, go to www.WestTexasWind.us.
By Julie Anderson