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WINTER 2001
Turbine II Takes Off!
In 1998, it took just two and one-half weeks for 437 Capture The Wind™
Charter Members to fully subscribe MPS’s first wind turbine.
In 2000, MPS asked customers to "Help Moorhead
catch its second wind." In less than one month, another 490 MPS
customers joined in the crusade to Capture The Wind™.
"We weren’t sure the response would be as
enthusiastic, but we were very pleased to find such strong customer
support the second time around," says Christopher Reed, director of
energy services and marketing. "To receive such quick and
enthusiastic support shows that people in Moorhead are eager to step-up
efforts to bring more clean, renewable wind energy to our community."
New subscribers to MPS’s Capture The Wind™ program
are one step closer to receiving clean, wind-generated energy. At the last
meeting on February 12, 2001, the Moorhead Public Service Commission (PSC)
awarded the bid for MPS’s second wind 750-kilowatt wind turbine to N•E•G
Micon®. The Denmark-based firm, with manufacturing facilities
in Champagne, Illinois, is the world’s second largest manufacturer of
wind turbines and has manufactured more than 9,300 turbines worldwide.
Although earlier estimates for the project estimated costs at $729,000, N•E•G
Micon® came forward with a bid of $650,840, the lowest
qualified bid for the project.
Bill Schwandt, general manager for MPS, comments,
"Our first experience with the Capture The Wind™ program in 1998
was very positive. With the quick subscription of the second turbine and
with the low bid coming in from N•E•G Micon®, it looks as
though the Capture The Wind™ program will continue to build on its
former successes."
MPS plans to erect the second turbine on the northeast
edge of Moorhead, 1800 feet east of the first wind turbine. Reed adds,
"We anticipate the groundbreaking for the project will begin in the
summer of 2001. If things continue to go as planned, Turbine II should be
generating electricity by fall 2001."
Extra Extra! Read All About It!
Thanks to the support of our Capture The Wind™ members, MPS has
received both local and national attention for its successful wind energy
program.
With the support of over 900 Capture The Wind™
members, MPS is now ranked first nationally for its customer participation
rates according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL’s)
Top Ten List. Thanks to the 490 new Capture The Wind members, MPS’s
customer participation rates have risen from 4.3% to 7.3%, the highest
percentage in the nation! Visit NREL online at: http://www.eren.doe.gov/greenpower/topten.shtml.
MPS’s Capture The Wind program was also featured in
the Western Area Power Administration’s (WAPA’s) Energy Services
Bulletin in February 2001. "What makes Moorhead’s wind energy
program so successful," the cover story, explores the development of
the program and focuses on the positive experiences Moorhead has had with
its Capture The Wind program. Visit WAPA online at: http://www.es.wapa.gov/pubs/.
Name that Turbine!
We need an original name for the turbine formerly known as Turbine I,
which is why we’re asking you, our Capture The Wind™ members, to help
us find a more suitable pseudonym.
It’s a breeze! All you have to do is fill out the
bottom of this card and drop it in the mail. Only Capture The Wind™
members are eligible to enter, and all entries must be received or
postmarked by April 2, 2001 to be considered.
Winners will be notified by April 13, 2001, and the name
will be formally announced during Earth Week, on April 25, 2001. The top
three nominations will receive their choice of wind-related prizes. In
addition, the turbine’s new name, along with the winning entrant’s
name, will be listed on a plaque on Turbine I. MPS staff will select the
winning submissions.
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