Whitehall residents hit the road to take look at Minn. wind farm

Seven Whitehall residents will travel Thursday to visit a wind farm operated by Navitas, a Minneapolis-based wind-power company with designs on the Golden Sunlight site.

By Leslie McCartney of The Montana Standard

Jefferson County Local Development Corp.’s Scott Mendenhall said that the people will view a site near the South Dakota-Minnesota border. Expected to take part are local business people and Golden Sunlight mine personnel, since the new wind farm will be placed on Golden Sunlight land.

"It will help us in working on a lease between the mine and Navitas," Mendenhall said. "Seeing one of their wind farms is an important aspect of that."

Mendenhall is optimistic about the project, which was greeted with enthusiasm by Whitehall residents in a recent survey about what to do with the Golden Sunlight site after mining concludes. Active mining at the 20-plus-year-old gold mine could end this year.

Under preliminary plans announced last year, Navitas hopes to erect about 28 white turbines that are 300 feet tall on ground owned by Golden Sunlight and in some places the Bureau of Land Management. The turbines would turn air currents into power, generating about 50 megawatts of electricity. That would light roughly 50,000 homes. With wind energy, the company could provide a renewable, non-polluting source of energy for Montanans.

The project hinges on a power agreement between Navitas and NorthWestern Energy, which serves about 300,000 electricity customers in the state. It then needs the blessing of the state Public Service Commission.

"I know until a power- purchase agreement is approved by the PSC, there is no deal … but we are certainly down the road more than ever before," Mendenhall said.

Negotiations with Navitas and one other bidder continue in secret. An official said that the sides are working on contract terms and that no deal- stoppers or problems are apparent. A successful power pact could mean millions of dollars for local economies, both in terms of investment and long- term jobs.

Construction would take six to nine months and would employ 20 to 30 workers. A permanent work force of five to seven full-time technical workers will be needed after that.

Navitas is one of two wind-power projects selected by NorthWestern Energy to bid for the state’s entry into wind power. Both sides refused to talk about contract progress and when a decision could be expected.

"I really can’t comment … there is a strict confidentiality agreement," said Greg Jaunich, president of Northern Alternative Power, the parent company of Navitas.

The company has been involved in the state for a couple years and has been dogged in its pursuit of the Whitehall project. It was one of four companies that bid for the wind component of a default supply portfolio put together by NorthWestern Energy. The company lost out to Montana Wind Harness. Navitas protested that the bid had been awarded in error since NorthWestern had passed over the cheapest supplier.

The Wind Harness contract was voided by NorthWestern when the PSC rejected contracts. The company then sought to be considered a qualifying facility, therefore setting a price for its electricity and guaranteeing the company a way to establish itself in the state.

In another roadblock, the PSC approved a contract for Navitas, but the company said the price set was so low that the project wasn’t realistic to build.

Reporter Leslie McCartney may be reached via e-mail at leslie.mccartney@mtstandard. com.

http://www.mtstandard.com/articles/2003/06/05/newsbutte/hjjgjdjejbhjic.txt