RHODE ISLAND OPENS UP FOR OCEAN WIND

Law sets new standard for approval of wind farm
Alex Kuffner, June 16, 2010 (Providence Journal)

"…Under a new law…[the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission] will have just 45 days to rule on a revised contract being negotiated by [National Grid] the largest electric utility in Rhode Island and [Deepwater Wind] the state’s preferred offshore wind developer.

"…Governor Carcieri signed legislation that establishes an abbreviated process for the PUC to consider the merits of a long-term agreement for National Grid to buy power from the eight-turbine wind farm that Deepwater is planning in state waters off Block Island…[The] $200-million project [is expected to] lead to a utility-scale, 100-turbine wind farm also off Rhode Island and spur the development of a green-manufacturing hub…"

click to enlarge

"…The new law has aroused fervent opposition from a wide variety of critics…[who] have called it a special-interest measure designed to benefit a single private entity…The PUC last March unanimously rejected the original contract proposal between National Grid and Deepwater because it judged the price of 24.4 cents per kilowatt-hour to be not “commercially reasonable…” …Rather than ruling whether the price is broadly commercially reasonable, the PUC must now approve the contract if it is deemed to be “commercially reasonable for a small offshore wind-demonstration project that is limited to eight wind turbines, even if there may be other energy alternatives in the region that could produce electricity at a lower unit cost.”

"The Conservation Law Foundation…hasn’t changed its position on wind energy, but it has pulled its support of Deepwater’s proposal…Rep. Laurence W. Ehrhardt, R-North Kingstown — whose district includes Quonset Point where Deepwater would stage its projects — also initially backed the company’s plans, but was persuaded otherwise by the PUC’s decision against the contract…[R]epresentatives of Common Cause and Operation Clean Government as well as other objectors testified against the bill, but it was easily approved last week by both chambers of the Assembly, with a 25-10 vote in the Senate and a 56-15 vote in the House."

click to enlarge

"The new law caps the price of wind power at 24.4 cents per kilowatt-hour, more than twice the cost of energy from conventional sources. Deepwater, however, expects to be able to decrease some capital costs and reach a lower price. Any cost savings would be passed on to ratepayers…The law also directs the PUC to consider positive effects of the project on economic development and potential environmental benefits, including reducing carbon emissions…

"Paul Rich, Deepwater’s chief development officer, said his company and National Grid started a new round of negotiations…He expects an agreement soon…Under the company’s current timeline, it would still be able to order turbines and other components this year to qualify for a crucial federal investment-tax credit that expires in December…"