Offshore Wind Wire

The New York Power Authority launched a search yesterday for a developer who can install as much as 500 MW of offshore wind power capacity in Lake Erie, Lake Ontario or both.

“Today we reach a milestone in New York’s energy history,” said Power Authority CEO Richard Kessel.  “Developing the natural wind resources of New York’s own Great Lakes will help diversify the state’s energy mix, strengthen our energy independence, promote economic development, create jobs and expand the use of clean, green electricity.”

Kessel originally announced the plan to develop wind power on the New York portion of the Great Lakes in April 2009.  The Request for Proposals issued yesterday launched a process that will result in a project award in December 2010, according to New York state officials.

The New York Power Authority is the largest state-owned non-profit power entity in the country, according to the organization’s Web site.  It generates electricity for other government agencies, municipal electric systems, rural electric cooperatives, manufacturers and investor-owned utilities for resale without profit.  The Power Authority is also part of a collaborative that is seeking to develop a wind farm in the ocean 13 miles off of New York City.

The Power Authority has conducted preliminary studies on the Great Lakes, including an assessment of the wind resource.  Those studies resulted in maps which show feasible wind generation sites on Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

According to the Request for Proposals, the Power Authority will buy the output from the project under a long-term Power Purchase Agreement.  Negotiations for that agreement are scheduled to conclude by June 2011.  The Power Authority said that it would favor projects that have a “high likelihood” of community acceptance and projects that can be completed by 2015.

If successful, the project would be a major step toward New York Governor David Patterson’s ambitious goal to have 30 percent of the state’s electrical load generated by renewable energy sources.

Developers must submit notice of intent by March 20, 2010 and submit the actual proposal by June 1, 2010.

The project will “help demonstrate the significantly untapped potential of offshore wind, and bring new clean energy jobs to Western New York,” Patterson said.  “I commend the New York Power Authority for helping transition New York to a clean energy economy.”