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The power is in the wind

Basin Electric dedicates cooperative-owned project and another successful partnership

Basin Electric Power Cooperative - July 21, 2010

PrairieWinds ND 1

Basin Electric held a dedication ceremony June 17 for the nation's largest wind project owned solely by a cooperative. The $250-million project is located south of Minot, ND, and is owned and operated by PrairieWinds ND 1 Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Basin Electric.

There are 80 new wind turbines in the project, joining two "originals" that were placed in service in 2002.

North Dakota Gov. John Hoeven talked about the significance of developing wind resources in the state. "Basin Electric has been a real leader in the move to incorporate wind power into its portfolio," he said. "With this project, Basin Electric demonstrates that in North Dakota, we can do it all - we can produce affordable power from all sources with good stewardship, for the benefit of North Dakota and the nation."

The last few turbines of the project went into operation at 8:25 p.m. on Dec. 30, meeting the cooperative's aggressive time line to complete the project in 2009.

In his introductory remarks, Ron Harper, Basin Electric CEO and general manager, said, "The Minot wind project represents a significant contribution to Basin Electric's and North Dakota's energy picture. With the operation of this project, Basin Electric has more than 450 megawatts (MW) of wind energy capacity in its portfolio."

Cliff Gjellstad, president of Basin Electric's board of directors, said this project and the other wind projects that Basin Electric is involved with are the result of a resolution passed by the membership in 2005 setting a goal of renewable generation resources equaling 10 percent of their peak demand needs. "Through renewable projects like this where we've either built them or purchased power from them, Basin Electric has been a leader in North Dakota for developing wind projects. With this project now operating, Basin Electric will exceed the requirement set by the member cooperatives."

Commenting that this is the largest wind project owned solely by a cooperative, Gjellstad said this really shows the innovation of Basin Electric. He went on to describe several projects throughout the cooperative's history that are "firsts" or set a standard that's in use today.

"Through direct investments and annual payments under power purchase agreements from other renewable resources, these projects represent a capital investment of more than $1 billion in renewable energy and more than 700 megawatts of wind generation committed and constructed by the end of 2010," Gjellstad said.

A member system of Basin Electric, Verendrye Electric Cooperative, Velva, ND, provided a tremendous local force throughout the development of the project. Speaking at the ceremony, Bruce Carlson, Verendrye Electric general manager, said this is a dream come true for him after collecting wind data from the old radar base back in the late '70s and early '80s. "We knew we had the wind resource and Basin Electric was able to fit all the puzzle pieces together making the dream a reality." He also congratulated the Minot Air Force Base for being one of the first customers to buy renewable energy from the first two wind turbines that were built in 2002. "The air base folks were an integral part in getting the first two wind turbines operating, and now it's grown to be one of the largest wind farms in the country," Carlson said.

State and federal agencies also played a key role in the project. "I'd like to thank the North Dakota Public Service Commission, along with other state and federal regulators, for their assistance and commitment to seeing this project through and their commitment to wind development in North Dakota," Harper said.

There are three wind projects south of Minot and north of Max. Two of them, consisting of five turbines, interconnect with a substation owned by Central Power Electric Cooperative, Minot, a Basin Electric member cooperative. The two turbines near Radar Base Hill were built in 2002. The other three were built in 2009. The remaining 77 turbines interconnect with a new substation, adjacent to the operations and maintenance building, to connect to a Western Area Power Administration (Western) 115-kilovolt transmission line. The three projects generate a total of 122.6 MW.

"This also highlights the value of the long-standing partnership with Western on the Integrated System. Interconnecting to Western's line, which crosses the project site, avoided the need for constructing about two miles of interconnection line and a 230-kilovolt interconnection substation," Gjellstad said. "Western's engineering support was critical to the success of this project." Western is a federal power marketing agency.

Basin Electric employs about eight full-time operations and maintenance personnel at the wind projects.

Day County Wind Energy Center

Basin Electric joined NextEra Energy Resources, the Western Area Power Administration and East River Electric Power Cooperative to dedicate the Day County Wind Energy Center on June 22 near Groton, SD.

More than 150 local and regional guests joined South Dakota Gov. Mike Rounds and company officials to celebrate the commercial operation of the 99-megawatt (MW) wind project and the organizations that helped make the facility a reality.

"It's extremely gratifying to see this impressive project in our state," Rounds said. "South Dakota has an abundance of wind, and we hope it will continue to be harnessed far and wide in the future to make clean energy, boost local economies, provide good jobs, and add to the already excellent quality of life enjoyed by South Dakota citizens."

Located in Day County about 20 miles east of Groton, the Day County Wind Energy Center is capable of providing enough power for nearly 25,000 homes. Commercial operation of the 66, 1.5-MW wind turbines began in April 2010.

"The Day County Wind Energy Center is the latest example of NextEra Energy Resources' ongoing commitment to expanding renewable energy projects in South Dakota and across the United States," said Mike O'Sullivan, senior vice president of development for NextEra Energy Resources. "In addition to generating clean, emission-free energy, this project will have an impact on the local economy through the jobs created, taxes paid, lease payments to landowners, and goods and services sourced locally."

Basin Electric will eventually purchase the entire output from the project, but electricity produced in the first three years of operation will be sold to the Western Area Power Administration, a federal power marketing agency.

"Basin Electric and its member systems are leaders in helping to develop wind projects in the Dakotas," said Ron Harper, CEO and general manager of Basin Electric. "In just five months, a lot of hard work by a lot of people brought this project from the drawing board to reality. I'm very proud of our efforts in providing renewable generation to our members and incorporating it with an already efficient fleet of generation facilities."

"It's tremendously exciting to be part of the Day County Wind Energy Center dedication. This short-term purchase fits our strategic goals for purchasing replacement power and promotes renewable resources. As we deliver cost-based, renewable, non-carbon emitting federal hydropower to our firm customers, Western continually recognizes the enormous value in customer partnerships. This agreement is just one example of many successful partnerships Western has with Basin Electric," said Western's Administrator Tim Meeks.

"East River is pleased to be a part of expanding the use of wind energy for both its members and Basin Electric. East River's work force demonstrated exceptional efforts building transmission to energize this project. We are pleased to be an integral part of making this project happen," said Jeff Nelson, East River general manager.

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