Reports related to this article:
Project(s): View 3 related projects in PECWeb
Plant(s): View 3 related plants in PECWeb
en
Written by John Egan for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--MidAmerican Energy Company (Des Moines, Iowa), a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRKA) (Omaha, Nebraska), wants to invest about $900 million to construct up to 552 megawatts (MW) of new wind power generating capacity in Iowa. The request, filed earlier this summer with Iowa utility regulators, said construction could begin early next year, and the new turbines could be operating by yearend 2016, providing the regulators approve the request in a timely fashion.
If the utility keeps to that schedule, the new wind generation should be eligible for federal Production Tax Credits (PTCs) of about 2.3 cents per kilowatt-hour for all electricity generated for 10 years. Those tax credits expired at the end of 2014, but projects that became operational by yearend 2016 were eligible to receive the credits.
The windfarms are not yet named, and the utility did not provide their proposed location. It did say the new generation would be split between two locations in the Hawkeye State.
MidAmerican Energy has invested heavily in wind power over the last decade: It has built about 3,500 MW of wind power at a cost of about $5.8 billion. The utility's investments in wind power have placed it far ahead of all other rate-regulated utilities in the nation in terms of wind ownership.
"We are very excited about building additional windfarms that will produce clean, carbon-free energy," said Bill Fehrman, president and chief executive of MidAmerican Energy, in a statement released earlier this summer. "Wind continues to be a factor in keeping our customers' electricity rates among the lowest in the nation." Increased reliance on wind power also insulates MidAmerican Energy's 746,000 customers in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and South Dakota from price spikes in natural gas or supply disruptions with other fuels.
"We have abundant wind resources in Iowa and community leaders and landowners who want wind development in their areas," Fehrman continued. "If we look back a little more than a decade ago, we did not own any wind-generation resources across our system. As a company, we made a commitment to developing wind as a resource for our customers, and we're proud to say we've followed through with and expanded upon that commitment."
When the proposed projects are completed, the utility is projecting that 57% of its total retail electric load could be served by wind energy.
"This puts us in a strong position to comply with future carbon emissions limits without placing the significant financial burden of that compliance on our customers," Fehrman said.
Iowa Governor Terry Branstad noted in a statement that MidAmerican Energy's efforts have helped the state become a national leader in wind generation: "Iowa derives a greater percentage of its electricity from wind than any other state, and we're second in the nation in the number of people employed in the wind industry. Thanks to our low electricity prices and commitment to renewable energy, major tech companies and other energy-intensive businesses are interested in locating and expanding facilities here, which is good economic news for all Iowans."
MidAmerican is in the midst of a brisk construction program for wind power. Two years ago, it announced plans to invest up to $1.9 billion to expand its wind generation fleet and add up to 1,050 MW of new wind generation in Iowa by yearend 2015 in five Iowa counties: Grundy, Madison, Marshall, O'Brien and Webster. For more on that issue, see December 32, 2013, article - Iowa Approves MidAmerican Energy's Plans for $1.9 Billion in Windfarm Projects.
Click the image at right for a map showing where MidAmerican's windfarms are being constructed.
One of the projects announced in 2013, the 499-MW Highland Wind Energy Center, located in O'Brien County, Iowa, is scheduled to finish construction at the end of 2015. Construction of a second project announced in 2013, the 147-MW Adams County Windfarm, is scheduled to kick off early next year and be completed by yearend 2016. A third project announced in 2013, the 250-MW Macksburg Windfarm in Madison County, Iowa, kicked off construction in late 2013 and is scheduled to be complete by the end of 2015.
The wind power projects announced earlier this summer are in addition to the utility's 2013 construction program.
"There are precious few people who are smarter than Warren Buffet, chief executive at MidAmerican's parent company Berkshire Hathaway," noted Brock Ramey, Industrial Info's North American Power specialist. "That's why he's called the 'Oracle of Omaha.' He saw where wind energy was going a long time ago, and he drove the utility in that direction. Along the way, he, and MidAmerican's customers, have benefitted handily from federal tax breaks as well as declining costs and increasing operating efficiencies."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
If the utility keeps to that schedule, the new wind generation should be eligible for federal Production Tax Credits (PTCs) of about 2.3 cents per kilowatt-hour for all electricity generated for 10 years. Those tax credits expired at the end of 2014, but projects that became operational by yearend 2016 were eligible to receive the credits.
The windfarms are not yet named, and the utility did not provide their proposed location. It did say the new generation would be split between two locations in the Hawkeye State.
MidAmerican Energy has invested heavily in wind power over the last decade: It has built about 3,500 MW of wind power at a cost of about $5.8 billion. The utility's investments in wind power have placed it far ahead of all other rate-regulated utilities in the nation in terms of wind ownership.
"We are very excited about building additional windfarms that will produce clean, carbon-free energy," said Bill Fehrman, president and chief executive of MidAmerican Energy, in a statement released earlier this summer. "Wind continues to be a factor in keeping our customers' electricity rates among the lowest in the nation." Increased reliance on wind power also insulates MidAmerican Energy's 746,000 customers in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and South Dakota from price spikes in natural gas or supply disruptions with other fuels.
"We have abundant wind resources in Iowa and community leaders and landowners who want wind development in their areas," Fehrman continued. "If we look back a little more than a decade ago, we did not own any wind-generation resources across our system. As a company, we made a commitment to developing wind as a resource for our customers, and we're proud to say we've followed through with and expanded upon that commitment."
When the proposed projects are completed, the utility is projecting that 57% of its total retail electric load could be served by wind energy.
"This puts us in a strong position to comply with future carbon emissions limits without placing the significant financial burden of that compliance on our customers," Fehrman said.
Iowa Governor Terry Branstad noted in a statement that MidAmerican Energy's efforts have helped the state become a national leader in wind generation: "Iowa derives a greater percentage of its electricity from wind than any other state, and we're second in the nation in the number of people employed in the wind industry. Thanks to our low electricity prices and commitment to renewable energy, major tech companies and other energy-intensive businesses are interested in locating and expanding facilities here, which is good economic news for all Iowans."
MidAmerican is in the midst of a brisk construction program for wind power. Two years ago, it announced plans to invest up to $1.9 billion to expand its wind generation fleet and add up to 1,050 MW of new wind generation in Iowa by yearend 2015 in five Iowa counties: Grundy, Madison, Marshall, O'Brien and Webster. For more on that issue, see December 32, 2013, article - Iowa Approves MidAmerican Energy's Plans for $1.9 Billion in Windfarm Projects.
Click the image at right for a map showing where MidAmerican's windfarms are being constructed.One of the projects announced in 2013, the 499-MW Highland Wind Energy Center, located in O'Brien County, Iowa, is scheduled to finish construction at the end of 2015. Construction of a second project announced in 2013, the 147-MW Adams County Windfarm, is scheduled to kick off early next year and be completed by yearend 2016. A third project announced in 2013, the 250-MW Macksburg Windfarm in Madison County, Iowa, kicked off construction in late 2013 and is scheduled to be complete by the end of 2015.
The wind power projects announced earlier this summer are in addition to the utility's 2013 construction program.
"There are precious few people who are smarter than Warren Buffet, chief executive at MidAmerican's parent company Berkshire Hathaway," noted Brock Ramey, Industrial Info's North American Power specialist. "That's why he's called the 'Oracle of Omaha.' He saw where wind energy was going a long time ago, and he drove the utility in that direction. Along the way, he, and MidAmerican's customers, have benefitted handily from federal tax breaks as well as declining costs and increasing operating efficiencies."
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
