QUICK NEWS, July 25: OFFSHORE WIND CAN BE PEAK POWER; SOLAR’S TAX CREDIT PAYS 10% PROFIT; NEW HAMPSHIRE WIND BOOM

OFFSHORE WIND CAN BE PEAK POWER Lesson from heatwave: Offshore project would pump lots of electricity during summer peaks, says Deepwater

20 July 2012 (Wind Energy Weekly)

“Record-high temperatures along the East Coast in recent weeks have spurred conversation about the availability of electric capacity during peak usage…Deepwater Wind this week released data showing that its planned Deepwater Wind Energy Center (DWEC), a 900-MW offshore wind farm that would be located 20 miles off the coasts of Massachusetts and Rhode Island, would reach maximum output on the hottest days of summer in the Northeast, just when electric grids most need the energy.

“During the first heat wave of the season, in late June, temperatures and the electric demand on Long Island surged. For example, on June 21, a new high for the date was set on Long Island as the temperature peaked at 95 degrees in the late afternoon. Electric demand followed that temperature rise. Likewise, demand for electricity in New England also soared during the heat wave…Data modeled by Deepwater Wind’s meteorological experts, AWS Truepower, show that DWEC would have been operating near its maximum output during the afternoons of both June 20 and June 21, when the heat wave was at its peak.”

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“…While [Deepwater Wind’s] wind farm is projected to produce at an average of approximately 45 percent capacity over the course of a full year, it would have been producing much more, in the range of 65-90 percent capacity, during most of the hottest hours of the heat wave…Another Northeast developer, Cape Wind, has pointed to similar data from its wind measurement instruments during heat waves.

“Deepwater Wind has proposed to sell power from DWEC to the Long Island Power Authority via a new transmission system connecting Long Island and southeastern New England. The developer also intends to market power from DWEC to Massachusetts and Rhode Island…”

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SOLAR’S TAX CREDIT PAYS 10% PROFIT Study: Solar Investment Tax Credit Pays For Itself, Delivers 10% Return

20 July 2012 (Solar Industry)

“The solar investment tax credit (ITC) can deliver a 10% internal rate of return to taxpayers on the U.S. government's initial investment, according to [Paid In Full; An Analysis of the Return to the Federal Taxpayer for Internal Revenue Code Section 48 Solar Energy Investment Tax Credit (ITC)] published by the U.S. Partnership for Renewable Finance (PREF), a program of the American Council On Renewable Energy (ACORE).

“The study examined the cashflows generated by tax revenues on solar leases and power purchase agreements and found that a $10,500 tax credit for a residential system can provide a $22,882 nominal benefit to the government in those scenarios over the life of the solar asset, and a $300,000 commercial solar credit can create a $677,627 nominal benefit in a similar time period…”

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“SolarCity, a member of PREF, created the models for the study based on industry data and consulted with tax and advisory firm KPMG on the application of current income tax law and evaluation methodology for federal government incentives…"

[Lyndon Rive, CEO, SolarCity:] "Everyone understands that solar power leads to cleaner air and greater independence from fossil fuel…Far fewer people realize that solar incentives can pay for themselves. Solar power has become a political football in this election year, but the investment tax credit has been one of the most beneficial, bipartisan energy policies of this or any other generation."

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NEW HAMPSHIRE WIND BOOM Advocates voice optimism for NH's wind power potential

Gerry Miles, July 15, 2012 (New Hampshire Union Leader)

“New Hampshire has the potential to have its wind industry grow fivefold during 2012, according to the American Wind Energy Association…State wind production is currently 26 megawatts, with projects that will produce an additional 147 megawatts under construction…[and the use of] renewable energies in the state is growing…

“The Lempster Wind Power Project’s 12 turbines produce enough energy (up to 24 megawatts) to power 10,000 homes and offset the carbon dioxide emissions equivalent to 5,700 cars annually. Each turbine tower stands 256 feet tall, supporting a 139-foot turbine blade, making the total height 395 feet when the blade is vertical to the ground. Lempster is owned by the Iberdrola Renewables company…Public Service of New Hampshire buys all of Lempster’s power, which is then resold to the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative.

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“Granite Reliable Power Windpark in Coos County was purchased by Brookfield Renewable Energy in February 2011…Brookfield hopes to boost its wind portfolio to have an installed capacity of more than 600 megawatts by the end of 2012. Granite Reliable has a stated output of 99 megawatts…The Antrim wind farm is still in the permitting process [and is expected to break ground about 2014]…One of the state’s first wind farms, Loranger Power Generation in Berlin, was commissioned in 2006. It is capable of producing about 1.35 megawatts of power…The power generated at Loranger comes from three turbines and is returned to the state’s power grid by Public Service of New Hampshire.

“About 12 percent of the state’s power is derived from renewable energy resources…[T]he majority of the state’s electricity is produced by fossil fuel (47 percent) and nuclear power (41 percent)…The first wind turbines in the United States were installed on land at the Crotched Mountain Rehabilitation Center in Greenfield, dedicated on April 24, 1981…Each tower, built by US Windpower, stood 60 feet tall and used a three-blade fiberglass propeller 20 feet wide to generate power. The project failed, and the company declared bankruptcy in 1996.”

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