Zephyr General Turbine Statistics
NAME: "ZEPHYR" - named April 25, 2001
Manufacturer: N E G Micon
Contractor: M. A. Mortenson
Began generating: May 14, 1999
Dedicated: June 24, 1999
Cost: $ 667,000
Power Rating: 750 kilowatts
Tower Weight: 55 tons
Tower Height: 180 feet
Total Height: 263 feet
Total Weight: 92 tons
Nacelle Weight: 22 tons
Blade Weight: 4 tons each
Blade Length: 78 feet
Rotor Diameter: 156 feet
Rotor and Hub Weight: 15 tons
Blade Revolution Speed: 22 rpm
Wind Speed Facts
6 mph - rotor spins
9 mph - generation
56 mph - turbine shuts down to avoid equipment damage
Generation Facts:
Unit generated 20,000 kWh in first week of operation
Expected output: 2,000,000 kWh per year
As of December 31, 2002, Zephyr has generated 5,271,054 kWh of clean, wind energy.
Components:
Blades - Denmark
Tower - Red Wing, MN
Generator - Champaign IL
Fascinating Facts:
- If you weighed Zephyr, Moorhead Public Service's wind turbine, it would tip the scale at a hefty 90 to 100 tons - about the same as 20 elephants.
- The Moorhead Public Service wind turbine is 263 feet high, which is equivalent to three to four school buses stacked end-to-end.
- In 1999, Moorhead Public Service received a Minnesota Environmental Initiative Award for its Capture The Wind® program.
- With the addition of over 400 new Capture The Wind® members in 2000, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory now ranks Moorhead Public Service first in the nation for its customer participation rates.
- Moorhead Public Service received the American Public Power Association's Energy Innovator Award in 2001 for its Capture The Wind® program.
Freedom General Turbine Statistics
NAME: "FREEDOM" - named April 24, 2002
Manufacturer: N E G Micon
Contractor: Wanzek Construction
Electrical Contractor: Rick Electric
Began generating: August 25, 2001
Dedicated: April 24, 2002
Cost: $ 650,840
Power Rating: 750 kilowatts
Tower Weight: 55 tons
Tower Height: 180 feet
Total Height: 263 feet
Total Weight: 92 tons
Nacelle Weight: 22 tons
Blade Weight: 4 tons each
Blade Length: 78 feet
Rotor Diameter: 156 feet
Rotor and Hub Weight: 15 tons
Blade Revolution Speed: 22 rpm
Wind Speed Facts
6 mph - rotor spins
9 mph - generation
56 mph - turbine shuts down to avoid equipment damage
Generation Facts:
Freedom is situated just 1,950 feet east of Zephyr.
Expected output: 2,000,000 kWh per year.
As of December 31, 2002, Freedom has generated just over 2,000,000 kWh of clean, wind energy.
Components:
Blades - Grand Forks, ND
Tower - Red Wing, MN
Generator - Champaign IL
Fascinating Facts:
- In 1998, Moorhead Public Service's first wind turbine was fully subscribed in less than three weeks. With a waiting list of about 100 customers, MPS offered its customers another chance to receive clean, wind energy during Capture The Wind® Week in October 2000. Within one month, over 400 more customers had joined in the crusade to "Capture The Wind" in Moorhead, and the utility had fully subscribed its second wind turbine.
- Moorhead Public Service's first wind turbine was officially named "Zephyr" by our Capture The Wind® members on April 25, during Earth Week 2001. Moorhead Public Service's second wind turbine was officially named "Freedom" by our Capture The Wind® members on April 24, 2002, during Earth Week.
- By October, 2004, our twin turbines have generated over 13 million kWh of clean, wind energy.
- By substituting wind energy for coal-generated power, our Capture The Wind® members have effectively prevented the emission of 16 million pounds of greenhouse gases into the environment, which has the same effect on the environment as removing 1,645 cars from the road or planting 2,243 acres of trees.
- In 1999, Moorhead Public Service received the Minnesota Environmental Initiative Award for its Capture The Wind® program.
- Over 900 MPS customers (7%) participate in the Capture The Wind® program. With the addition of over 400 new Capture The Wind® members in 2000, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) now ranks Moorhead Public Service first in the nation for its customer participation rates.
- Moorhead Public Service received the American Public Power Association's Energy Innovator Award in 2001 for its successes with the Capture The Wind® program.