Steve Kramer

Mesa Power Orders 1,000 MW of Wind Turbines

Interesting, but not quite on the mark. I work for a major utility and agree that the production tax credit is needed for wind development now but when oil prices rise to a certain level, bringing gas prices with them, wind will become viable without the PTCs.

You're also right that resources (either quick-start generators or demand-response) need to be available to offset the intermittent nature of wind. Please note that I said "intermittent" and not "unpredictable," as wind is predictable to a significant degree. However, even more vital to the development of wind is a more robust transmission infrastrucure to get the power from the windiest areas (the Dakotas and Minnesota come to mind) to the population centers where the power is needed, such as large midwestern cities and even the eastern seaboard.

When it comes to developing necessary transmission, single states like Texas and California have it easier that regions like the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. Why? Because a power line must be approved by the utility commission of every state it crosses, and virtually every state has a law that says it must be shown that a utility facility will benefit the residents of that specific state before it can be approved.

Such laws are, I beleive, antiquated to the extent that we no longer have relatively small, discrete areas served by specific utilities. Today, much of the nationl is served by large, interconnected regional grids -- generally the eastern US, the western US, and Texas. There is no "nation-wide" grid at this point (and probably never will be) but the nation's electrical system is indeed regional and, if we're going to get where we need to be in terms of meeting our ever-growing hunger for electricity, we as citizens and our elected and appointed leaders need to look at the greater good and not just our own backyard.