Strong Gust of Wind Power Projects to Start in 2017

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Industrial Info is tracking $6.49 billion in wind power projects that are planned to kick off in the U.S. from January through March next year. Developers beginning wind project construction in 2017 can still take advantage of the federal government's production tax credit (PTC), although projects starting in 2017 will receive less than the $0.023 per kilowatt-hour rebate than projects that began construction in 2016.

The 19 projects being tracked by Industrial Info range in size from a $7 million, 3-megawatt (MW) pilot offshore windfarm near Galveston, Texas, to a $950 million, 478-MW grassroot windfarm in Hale County, Texas. This large -project is owned by NextEra Energy Incorporated (NYSE:NEE) (Juno Beach, Florida) and is planned to be completed in late November 2017.

Also in Texas is the planned expansion of the Mariah Windfarm in Parmer County, Texas. The first 230-MW phase (Mariah del Norte) of the project kicked off construction early last year and is expected to be completed by the end of this year. The expansion project (Mariah del Este) will add an additional 230 MW and is expected to kick off in the first quarter and take about year to complete. Geographically, the Southwest market region, which includes the state of Texas, leads in both the number and value of wind projects planned to kick off during the quarter, with eight projects valued at $3.74 billion. This is followed by the Great Lakes market region, with three projects valued at $800 million.

Click on the image at right for a breakdown by market region of planned first-quarter wind project starts.

In the Great Lakes region, the largest project planned to kick off during the quarter is the 278-MW Radford's Run Windfarm, being constructed by Twin Forks Wind Farm LLC (Chicago, Illinois) near Moroa, Illinois. The project will start construction in the first quarter and is expected to be completed by the end of the year, and will include construction of 139 2-MW Vestas wind turbine-generators.

In 2017, the wind PTC will be reduced by 20% from 2016 levels, and then an additional 20% each year through 2019, putting a construction policy of "the sooner, the better" in place for U.S. windfarms. So far, Industrial Info is tracking $36.81 billion of wind projects that are set to begin construction in the U.S. in 2017, including planned offshore wind developments.

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. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.