Panelists: Montana’s wind power plans lack steam – Great Falls project to be Montana’s first ‘utility grade’ wind operation

Montana has potential for wind-power development but must be more aggressive in planning how to market and move that power, some members of a wind panel said Thursday.

One member of the Wind Working Group also said Montana needs better overall coordination of an energy policy and that other states in the region are getting ahead of us. (See: http://www.matr.net/news.phtml?cat_id=9&catlabel=Energy Russ)

By MIKE DENNISON
Tribune Capitol Bureau

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/news/stories/20040305/localnews/16989.html

"There is nobody in Montana (state government) who knows what’s going on with energy as a whole," said Paul Williamson, dean of the College of Technology of the University of Montana-Missoula. "The perception out there is that Montana is a sleeper."

Panel members reacted to comments from Larry Flowers of the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory, who said Montana hasn’t been a strong presence at ongoing talks about transmitting power south to Utah, Colorado and California.

"You can bet Wyoming is all over that," Flowers said. "As I like to say, ‘If you’re not at the table, you’re likely to be on the menu.’ " http://www.matr.net/article-9315.html

Mark Lindberg, an energy and agricultural policy adviser to Gov. Judy Martz, is taking part in the Rocky Mountain Area Transmission Study, which is looking at these southbound transmission lines.

He was at an RMATS "steering committee" meeting Thursday in Salt Lake City and has attended past meetings.

Lindberg said Montana is working with the federal power agencies and NorthWestern Energy on a cost analysis of upgrading transmission lines to move power out of Montana.

"We are moving on (these issues), but it takes time to build relationships with not only the utilities but governors’ representatives in respective states," he said.

Lindberg sometimes is the only Montanan attending RMAT talks, while other states have several representatives.

Ed Bartlett, one of Montana’s two members of the Northwest Power and Conservation Council, said while Montana may be outnumbered in the RMATS talks, that doesn’t mean it’s ineffective.

"We’re not sure yet that anything will come of any of these (transmission) studies until there is some power generation need," he said. "But if it does, I think we’re positioned in Montana to be a part of it."

If new transmission is built heading south to Denver or other metro areas, Montana plans to be included, Bartlett said.

Regional energy forecasts are predicting that wind and coal are the most likely new sources of energy in the Northwest, and Montana has plentiful supplies of both, he added.

Still, speakers at the Wind Working Group said the perception exists that Montana is not being aggressive enough in promoting its interests, especially when it comes to wind power.

Flowers said North Dakota and South Dakota are looking to power demands outside their states and how they could develop power production that could meet those demands. Montana has the same resources, such as wind and coal, but isn’t as active, he said.

Williamson said Montana needs an "energy czar" state-level board to coordinate a statewide energy policy and help lead the state to long-term goals.

"Where do we want to be in 20 years?" he said. "If we don’t have some pathway or vision to achieve … we’re not going to get there."

Van Jamison, a former state energy official and wind-power advocate from Helena, said Wyoming is actively looking at how it can provide power to Western markets.

Dennison can be reached by e-mail at [email protected], or by phone at (406) 442-9493.

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Great Falls project to be Montana’s first ‘utility grade’ wind operation

Tribune Capitol Bureau

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/news/stories/20040305/localnews/16990.html

HELENA — A proposed wind-power project near Great Falls may become the first "utility grade" wind project in Montana, Cascade County Commission Peggy Beltrone said at a meeting here Thursday.

A nine-megawatt project with six wind turbines is proposed on Gore Hill, near a gravel pit operated by United Materials.

Beltrone said the project could be completed by September and producing power that can be sent over a transmission line.

Exergy Inc. is the developer of the project, and United Materials is the owner. The companies have not publicly revealed the buyer of power from the project.

Beltrone talked about the project at a meeting of the Montana Wind Working Group, a panel of wind-power advocates that met at the state Capitol.

She and others provided updates on active wind-power projects in Montana.

Other projects include:

l WindPark Solutions Montana, which is working on large wind farm near Judith Gap.

Wendy Kleinsasser of WindPark said the project is ready for development as soon as NorthWestern Energy completes its contract to buy power and the Montana Public Service Commission approves the contract. NorthWestern would buy the power and supply it to its 300,000 customers in western and central Montana.

She noted that the PSC last week decided it probably won’t examine any contracts until later this year.

"That kind of leaves us hanging again," she said.

l Liberty County, which unveiled a small wind turbine last week to help power the county shop in Chester.

Timlynn Babitsky said Liberty County commissioners have talked about developing a wind farm north of Chester.