Rhode Island political leaders pushed Monday for the state’s Public Utilities Commission to approve a power purchase agreement between Deepwater Wind and National Grid, the Providence Journal reported.
The pressure came as the commission enters its final week of hearing evidence on the pricing deal for an eight-turbine farm off Block Island — a decision is scheduled for Aug. 11. The agreement calls for electricity to be purchased at 24.4 cents per kilowatt hour in the first year of operations. A similar deal was struck down by the commission earlier this year, but the Rhode Island legislature essentially directed the regulators to re-examine the agreement.
According to the Journal, some observers believe “the PUC will have no choice but to approve” the project. During a hearing on Monday, however, Commission Chairman Elia Germani questioned cost estimates for the project and accused Deepwater of being a “shell company” — a charge that Deepwater officials vigorously contested.
Carcieri, House Speaker Gordon Fox and Senate President M. Teresa Paiva Weed also submitted a letter to the commission last Friday in support of the project. The letter says that Rhode Island has an opportunity to be a national leader in the offshore wind industry, according to Bloomberg Businessweek.
The Block Island Times also reported on Monday’s hearing, in a piece that ranged between reporting and anti-Deepwater opinion.
According to the Times, Deepwater “faced a barrage of skepticism,” including questions from an attorney representing state manufacturers who “persistently questioned Deepwater CEO William Moore to show that the cost and projected profit were understated.”
The deal would lower electric rates on Block Island but raise them on the mainland, the Times reported.
4. August 2010 at 9:40 am
The proposed wind power will cost 2-3 times per kwh more than what is currently paid, which makes it nonsense except for the brain dead, politically correct idiots that run this country.