CPWEA Annual Meeting to Feature Speakers From Tres Amigas and OwnEnergy

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association
Kelly Ayers, Executive Director
(806) 983-2793
Kelly.j.ayers@gmail.com

Tres Amigas and OwnEnergy Representatives to Speak to Texas Panhandle Communities

FLOYDADA, Texas, July 30, 2010 – A free meeting with speakers from Tres Amigas, a superstation which will serve as the nation’s first renewable energy market hub, and OwnEnergy, a wind energy developer looking to help communities generate their own renewable power, will be hosted by Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association (CPWEA) on August 12th at 6p.m.

The meeting, which will serve as CPWEA’s annual membership meeting, is open to the public and will be held at the Floyd County Friends Unity Center in Muncy, Texas on Hwy 70 and FM 786 between Floydada and Lockney.

Nathan Vajdos, a developer with OwnEnergy, will be the first speaker at the event. As a wind energy developer that specializes in community wind, OwnEnergy develops projects jointly with local community partners.

“Topics in Vajdos’ presentation will include an overview of OwnEnergy, community wind, an outline of the development process; and a discussion on landowner options,” said Kelly Ayers, CPWEA’s executive director.

Also attending the meeting, Frank Barbera, director of reliability assurance with Tres Amigas, will give an update on recent progress. The idea behind the Tres Amigas SuperStation is to build the first ever interconnection that will connect America’s three power grids (Western, Eastern and Texas Interconnections), providing a reliable, efficient way to transfer renewable energies between regions.

“Attendees can expect to learn more about how this proposed superstation will work and how it could benefit communities in the Texas Panhandle,” Ayers said.

For more information about these companies please visit their respective websites at http://www.ownenergy.net and http://www.tresamigasllc.com. For more about the upcoming meeting please contact CPWEA at (806) 983-2793 or check out http://www.caprockplainswind.com to find an agenda for the event.

CPWEA is a non-profit association working to connect landowners and local businesses with the wind industry. Our goal is to recruit wind development to the region and help revitalize rural communities. Go to http://www.caprockplainswind.com to find out more about our association and how you can help support our cause.

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TX Landowner Information

I recently received some useful information that was put together by LaFont, Formby & Hamilton, L.L.P. (Attorneys and Counselors in Plainview, Texas). They've given me permission to pass this information along, so I wanted to post it here. You can find a pdf of the information here, check out their website at http://www.lafontlaw.com/wind.html or simply keep reading. ........................................................................................................ Wind Energy Agreements and CREZ Transmission Line Process

Texas Landowner Information

Expansion of wind energy generation into the Texas Panhandle and Rolling Plains region provides us with the ability to harness one of our greatest natural resources. This expansion will have an unprecedented effect on landowner rights. While we recognize and embrace this opportunity, we also understand that it is important for the development to be effective, efficient, and adequately compensate landowners for the rights used or taken. The major issues faced by landowners during this development include: Wind Generation Easements and Agreements; the CREZ transmission routing process; and, the CREZ easement negotiation/condemnation and construction processes (in the event that your tract of land is selected as one of the transmission easement paths).

Wind Generation Easements and Agreements

Farm and ranch land in our region is being sought by wind energy generation developers. The standard form Wind Energy Easement Agreements are quite lengthy and complicated, and can substantially reduce your rights as a landowner unless certain provisions are added and others revised. The standard Wind Energy Easement Agreements offered by developers: restrict farming and irrigated farming; limit oil and gas, gravel and caliche exploration; prohibit conveyance or reservation of wind rights; affect hunting and wildlife management on the property; could convey a transmission easement without your approval or consent; and, contain no provision for removal and restoration of the property when the generators are no longer used.

The CREZ Transmission Routing Process

“CREZ” stands for Competitive Renewal Energy Zones. The CREZ process was established by the Texas legislature in 2005. It was created to help encourage development of wind generation in Texas by facilitating the construction of electric transmission lines to areas of the state determined to have superior wind energy resources. The Public Utility Commission of Texas (“PUCT”) has designated certain portions of West Texas and the Texas Panhandle and South Plains as CREZ zones and has selected a transmission scenario that will bring in 18,456 megawatts of wind power from these regions into the ERCOT electric market. The Electric Reliability Counsel of Texas (“ERCOT”) is an organization that is regulated by the PUCT and oversees the planning and operations of the electric grid that covers most of Texas. However, most residential and commercial customers located within our region are not connected to the ERCOT grid. Our region is connected to an interstate transmission grid that is overseen by a different regional transmission organization, the Southwest Power Pool. On January 29, 2009, the PUCT designated numerous transmission service providers, (“TSP”) including Sharyland Utilities, Cross Texas Transmission, WETT, ETT, and others to construct specific portions of the CREZ facilities in our region. Generally speaking, the Transmission Easement will be some 200 feet in width, and will employ a lattice or monopole structure. The TSP’s have been required by the PUCT to identify several routes which run throughout our region. Each of the TSP’s is required to file an Application with the PUCT for approval of the final route. In the event that one of the proposed routes crosses your property, you have an opportunity to participate in the route selection process. Our law firm is currently engaged in representing clients in the route selection process at the PUCT. In order to participate in the route selection process, you must file a Public Protest or a Request to Intervene within thirty (30) days of the Application filing date for each of the CREZ transmission projects. The following is a list of the transmission service providers, the counties affected by their designated project, and their Application filing deadline. Please consult our website to obtain a route specific map. TSP & Route Counties Deadline Sharyland Utilities - http://www.sharylandutilities.com/ Silverton to Cottonwood Briscoe, Floyd, Motley, Dickens September 8, 2010 Whitedeer to Silverton Carson, Armstrong, Briscoe November 10, 2010 Nazareth to Silverton Castro, Swisher, Briscoe October 20, 2010 Nazareth to Hereford Castro, Deaf Smith October 20, 2010 Cross Texas Transmission - http://www.crosstexas.com/maps.htm Silverton to Tesla Briscoe, Hall, Floyd, Motley, Cottle and Childress July 28, 2010 Gray to Tesla Gray, Wheeler, Donley, Collingsworth, Hall, Childress May 3, 2010 ETT - http://www.ettexas.com/projects/consortium.asp Cottonwood to Edith Clark Dickens, Motley, Cottle, King, Foard, Knox August 10, 2010 WETT - http://www.windenergyoftexas.com/project/intro Cottonwood to Dermott Dickens, Crosby, Garza, Kent, Scurry June 14, 2010 There are other CREZ transmission projects which are scheduled for construction throughout the state. Those are not listed in this letter as they do not directly affect our region. However, in the event that you need assistance or representation with regard to these other projects, we are capable of assisting or representing you in those matters as well. It is important to note that you have the opportunity to contact these companies directly in an effort to provide information or reach an agreement about routing on your particular land. However, your only formal opportunity to participate in the routing process is the filing of a Public Protest or an Application to Intervene with the PUCT.

The CREZ Easement, Negotiation/Condemnation and Construction Processes

In the event that your property is selected during the routing process, the TSP is required by law to contact you and to make attempts to negotiate an Easement Agreement. These Transmission Easement Agreements are quite complicated and their provisions can have a substantial effect on you as a landowner. If you are unable to reach an agreement, the TSP's will exercise the power of condemnation. Our law firm has experience in representing landowners throughout the easement negotiation and condemnation process. The condemnation process generally proceeds as follows: Failing an agreement, the TSP will file a request with a County Court at Law or District Court in the county where the property is located. This request will require the Judge of the relevant Court to appoint three Special Commissioners to resolve disputes regarding the value. The Court can appoint any person who is a property owner within the county. You have a right to participate in this process. In most instances, you should hire an appraiser to provide the Special Commissioners with your position about the value of your property. The Special Commissioners will establish the value of the "property taken" and damage to the "remainder", and then issue their decision. The TSP will have the right to begin construction once the amount established by the Special Commissioners' is deposited with the court. Either party may appeal the decision of the Special Commissioners by filing a lawsuit. In this lawsuit, the parties will be entitled to a Judge or Jury trial to decide the condemnation issues.

Contact Us

We hope that this information makes you aware of the significant issues landowners in our region will be facing with the expansion of wind energy into this area. If we can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact our law firm by telephone at 806-293-5361. ........................................................................................................ Here's our quick little disclaimer: CPWEA does not endorse any particular individuals or companies involved in any aspect of wind energy development. Until next time...

A Luncheon Trifecta

I haven't been able to make it down to a luncheon in Sweetwater, TX in quite a while. The Texas Wind Energy Clearinghouse holds monthly luncheons and they always offer great information, superb networking opportunities and not to mention a top-notch lunch! While I'd like to go into more detail about the actual meal I feel like you might be more interested in who was there and what we talked about, but just in case you are interested in the lunch menu I just have one thing to say, potatoes au gratin! Now, back to business...

I like sub-headings so let's divide this blog entry up. Up first, a little bit about who I got to network with at the luncheon and then keep reading to find out about the new economic impact study ("Winds of Prosperity") conducted by The Perryman Group.

Networking

There were several familiar faces at the luncheon. I enjoyed catching up with them and wanted to give them and their companies a quick mention. A special thanks to John with Martifer-Hirschfeld Energy Systems for following our blog. John is always sure to remind me, every time I have the pleasure of speaking with him, that he is still following the CPWEA blog. Thanks for reading John! Cliff with Peak Wind was also at the luncheon and we had a great discussion about small wind and how popular it's becoming. I was thrilled when Cliff informed me that the Sweetwater Reporter had picked up our recent press release about a local group that's building small turbines. Finally, it's always refreshing to run into John and Micah with The Shaw Group who made the trip up from Midland. John talked briefly with the group about issues that wind developers are having when working near railroads and it was great information to know. If any of you are reading this, it was great to see you last week!

"Winds of Prosperity"

The luncheon topic was the study recently released study conducted by The Perryman Group. Hold on tight, here's the complete title for the study, "Winds of Prosperity: The Impact of the Competitive Renewable Energy Energy Zone (CREZ) Investment in Transmission Infrastructure and the Potential Effects on Renewable Generation, Electricity Cost Savings, and Economic Development."

The complete report is quite detailed. You can find it at http://www.perrymangroup.com/reports/Winds_of_Prosperity_Final.pdf if you are interested. Here are a couple of highlights discussed at the luncheon last week. According to The Perryman Group investments in wind turbines and CREZ transmission lines will have the following impacts:

• The typical Texas residential consumer is expected to potentially save $160 to $355 annually in electricity bills
• $30 billion in economic gains, employment of thousands and almost $2 billion in additional state and local taxes.
• Help the state annually conserve approximately 17 billion gallons of water, reduce
  carbon dioxide emissions by as much as16 percent and reduce nitrogen oxide
  emissions by up to 13 percent.

Check out the full report for more in-depth details from the study. Thanks again to anyone and everyone that checks out our blog from time to time. I hope we keep you informed and at least a little entertained. Now, go find a place to get some potatoes au gratin.

Until next time...

Residential Turbines Going up Over the Texas Panhandle

As promised, here is more on Turbines Over Texas and my visit with a local duo who is manufacturing residential turbines. Check out our previous blog entry for pictures of the turbine, Turbines Over Texas.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association
Kelly Ayers, Executive Director
(806) 983-2793
Kelly.j.ayers@gmail.com

Residential Turbines Going up Over the Texas Panhandle

FLOYDADA, Texas, June 17, 2010 – Jesse Mendoza had only had his small residential turbine up at his house east of Hale Center, Texas, for a week and several interested locals had already stopped to question its use.

The turbine at Mendoza’s house is one of many that was designed and constructed in the area. Mendoza, a local DPS trooper, has been working with Randy Craig, a veterinary surgeon and professor of biology at Wayland Baptist University in Plainview, Texas, for several years trying to come up with an inexpensive, residential turbine that could save locals money on their electric bill. One of the pair’s active, operating wind turbines has been up for several years at Craig’s home west of Petersburg which also serves as their manufacturing location.

“We’ve learned and made a lot of mistakes; it probably took twenty prototypes to get to this one,” Craig said. “We’re a fledgling, un-marketed, couple of country boys in a barn company.”

It’s really nothing new for Craig, who Mendoza describes as the “brains” of the operation; Craig has been interested in wind for years. He serves as vice president of the board of directors at the American Wind Power Center and Museum in Lubbock. As a matter of fact, his father was one of the original wind mill enthusiasts of the museum. Craig has spent the last three years working with residential turbines and perfecting the model that is now going up across the South Plains.

The group is operating under the name Turbines Over Texas and while they haven’t done much to market their product just yet, word has been spreading fast. The pair received a lot of attention when they set up their turbine at Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association’s (CPWEA) Wind Expo in March.

The turbine at Mendoza’s house is positioned just inside his circle drive surrounded by a row of shrubbery, like it was always supposed to be there. The turbine stands roughly 51 feet tall to the top of the blade (44 feet to the center of the propeller) and on most days is busy spinning and covering a good part of Mendoza’s electric bill.

The turbine is hooked up to a bidirectional meter that allows it to power Mendoza’s house as well as sell any excess power back to the grid. The turbine is estimated to generate 6,000 to 8,000 kWh per year, but the Turbines Over Texas team is optimistic that it will create more than that.

“You have to look at it over an average of a year, because on one day the wind may not blow at all,” Mendoza said. “I’m very optimistic thinking that it will produce 10,000 to 12,000 kWh in a year.”

To describe the system as simple as possible, the turbine, when generating electricity, will power the house and charge back up batteries with any excess. When the wind slows down, or in the event of a power loss, the house can be powered by the charged batteries. Any electrical deficiencies are then covered by the grid. When the turbine produces excess power, not used to power Mendoza’s house, the additional power is sold back to the electrical company that operates the power grid.

The Turbines Over Texas group has created this small turbine to be sold at a lower price than similar models on the market. Mendoza and Craig were both proud to say that all of the turbine’s parts come from Texas, most of them locally.

The duo had important advice for anyone who thinks they might be interested in getting involved with small wind. If you are working with a large scale developer make sure and check your lease closely; some developers put a clause in their lease which restricts a landowner from putting up a small wind generator which isn’t purchased directly from the large scale wind developer.

The turbine at Mendoza’s house is connected through Lighthouse Electric Cooperative, a customer-owned electric utility with over 4,000 miles of line throughout 12 counties in the Panhandle, South Plains and Rolling Plains regions of Texas. Bruce Sisk, a master electrician and owner of S&S Electric, has been working with the group installing the turbines and getting them connected. If you are interested in having a Turbines Over Texas residential turbine at your house or business you can contact S&S Electric at (806) 293-9849.

CPWEA is a non-profit association working to connect landowners and local businesses with the wind industry. CPWEA is also interested in helping interested parties stay informed about small wind. Go to http://www.caprockplainswind.com to find out more about our association and how you can help support our cause.

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CPWEA would be more than happy to point you in the right direction if you have questions about small wind, just give us a call or shoot an email our way.

Until next time...

Press Release - The WINDPOWER Experience

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association
Kelly Ayers, Executive Director
(806) 983-2793
Kelly.j.ayers@gmail.com

Texas Panhandle Well Represented at Recent Wind Power Conference

FLOYDADA, Texas, June 2, 2010 – “We like wind; go get smart on it,” is what former President George W. Bush told the Texas Public Utility Commission Chairman, Pat Wood, back when he was the governor of Texas.

At the recent American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) annual WINDPOWER Conference in Dallas the 43rd President of the United States reflected back on key decisions he made that helped make Texas a leader in wind energy development. Bush also noted that if Texas were an independent nation it would be the sixth largest wind producing country.

Texas’s success in wind energy made it the ideal location to hold this year’s annual meeting of approximately 20,000 attendees and 1,400 exhibitors interested in wind energy, and the Texas Panhandle didn’t go unrepresented. Along with Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association, a non-profit group representing those supportive of wind energy throughout Hale, Floyd, Motley and surrounding counties in Texas, several others from the region attended the conference with the hopes of spreading the word that wind energy development is welcome in the region.

Justin Jaworski, Executive Director of the Floydada Economic Development Corporation attended the event in association with The High Ground of Texas. The High Ground is a regional economic development coalition of the 66 counties stretching from the Panhandle through the South Plains and to the upper Permian Basin.

“The level of representation for this region was incredible considering the size of this event. It was a great opportunity to talk up the region to some of the top developers in the nation,” Jaworski said. “We were able to make contact with several companies and remind them of the great wind resources we have and how business friendly we are as well.”

This year was David Foster’s first time to attend the annual event. Foster, a local landowner, said developers seem to be hesitant to move forward because of current transmission constraints in the region and are looking for areas that have collected meteorological (met) data. Foster said he developed contacts within the industry that could be instrumental in bringing more wind energy development to the South Plains.

“From all the developers I talked to it seemed like collecting met data was the best thing we could do to entice them to our area,” Foster said. “With the magnitude of investment that these companies are putting into wind, it really looks like the up and coming thing.”

During one of the breakout sessions during the conference, panel speakers recognized the lack of transmission as a major issue for renewable energy development. One speaker noted that the Competitive Renewable Energy Zone (CREZ) transmission build out in Texas is working to put the chicken first, essentially helping to solve the chicken versus the egg scenario with transmission and wind development in the Texas Panhandle.

Another session featured Ray Perryman of The Perryman Group, an economic and financial analysis firm that recently released a study outlining the impact of CREZ on electricity cost savings and economic development. The Perryman Group found that many areas throughout the state stand to benefit greatly from the CREZ build out, saving the typical Texas residential consumer between $160 and $355 annually on electric bills, creating $30 billion in economic gains, employing thousands and bringing in several billion dollars in state and local taxes. You can find the full report at http://www.perrymangroup.com.

Many experts at the conference expressed that extensive wind development is a national challenge that needs top down solutions. AWEA’s CEO Denise Bode stated that our nation is essentially competing with one hand tied behind its back until we get a solid national commitment to renewable development. Noted in a session on public acceptance, 89 percent of American voters believe that wind energy is a good idea.

CPWEA is a non-profit association working to connect landowners and local businesses with the wind industry. Our goal is to recruit wind development to the region and help revitalize rural communities. Go to http://www.caprockplainswind.com to find out more about our association and how you can help support our cause.

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Photos courtesy of the American Wind Energy Association. Find more photos from the event at www.flickr.com/awea.






Until next time...

Turbines Over Texas

We are expanding our horizons and focusing this blog post on something other than large development and transmission. Let's talk just a little bit about small residential turbines if you don't mind.

This morning I had the pleasure of talking with Randy Craig, a veterinary surgeon and professor of biology at Wayland Baptist University, and Jesse Mendoza, a local DPS trooper, out at Jesse's house just east of Hale Center, Texas. The two "country guys", as the describe themselves, have been working on the side to build residential wind turbines for several years now. They are working under they name Turbines Over Texas and while they haven't done an ounce of marketing outside attending CPWEA's recent Wind Energy Expo they already have several people interested in what they are doing.

With the help of master electrician Bruce Sisk of S&S Electric, the guys have installed a residential turbine at Jesse's house which is currently producing energy. The turbine is approximately 44 ft. tall at the center of the propeller and it was busy spinning away this morning, producing enough electricity to power Jesse's house and allow him to sell the excess back in to the grid.

I'm working on getting all the details together for a story to be posted on our website soon. Until then, check out the pictures I took this morning....




And just a heads up, all the parts used to construct these turbines come from the great state of Texas. Until next time...

Show Me the Transmission

Texas may not be the "Show Me" state, but we sure do seem to be showing the rest of the nation how to do wind energy. Texas has become an example of how to move forward with wind energy development. One of the ways we are planning for and making future development possible is by expanding our build-out of transmission lines to reach the windy regions of West Texas.

Class 4 Winds, a wind advocacy group based in Amarillo, Texas recently held a seminar entitled: Transmission - Where We Are Now. The event featured speakers from numerous entities involved with the transmission build out in Texas, some of the them with the CREZ (Competitive Renewable Energy Zones) process and some involved with other plans to make the transmission of wind energy out of the Panhandle of Texas much simpler.

Those who spoke on the current status of CREZ included:

• Brian Almon with the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT)
• Mark Meyer with Sharyland Utilities
• Cameron Fredkin with Cross Texas Transmission

Speaking on other current transmission projects in the area were:

• Pat Bourne with the Southwest Power Pool (SPP)
• Frank Barbera with Tres Amigas, LLC

Speaking on other various topics were:

• Harald Dirdal with Scandia Wind
• James Wester and Audie Sciumbato with Underwood Law Firm

I want to share with you a couple of the major things I took from the event. I'll have a more detailed description of the seminar in our monthly newsletter. You can also check Class 4 Winds' Web site; they should have copies of each presentation posted on their site sometime this week. I'll go over two important topics here today...

TOPIC #1 - Protesting and Intervening
Two different ways you can be involved in the PUCT's process for deciding transmission routes

Progress is being made in the planning of the transmission lines for the panhandle and it's important to know how you can be involved. Both Sharyland Utilities and Cross Texas Transmission are in the process of preparing their Certificates of Convenience and Necessity (CCNs) to submit to the PUCT (sidenote: if you are new to this blog/transmission development and curious as to how this process works check out this earlier post). You can find the deadline dates for CCN filings for each line segment that each Transmission Service Provider (TSP) is building on their respective Web sites. Most recently Cross Texas filed their first CCN on Monday May 3rd for their Gray to Tesla line.

Moving on to the point of this topic, it's important for landowners to know that they can be involved while this process is taking place. And there are two primary ways to do so outside of talking with the individual TSPs, essentially filing informal comments as a protestor and actually intervening in a case.

Basically, as a protestor you simply submit a verbal or written statement to the PUCT outlining your support or opposition of a specific project. On the other hand, to intervene in a case you must request intervenor status. This status is usually only granted to landowners who are directly affected by a line. As an intervenor you will be involved in the process in much more depth. You can find more information about the procedure involved with intervening in this brochure put out by the PUCT. It is recommended that intervenors have an attorney to help them with the process.

You can find all the forms necessary for being involved as either a protestor or intervenor on the PUCT's Web site (http://www.puc.state.tx.us/electric/forms/index.cfm)


TOPIC #2 - May 21st - A Final Hurdle
Developers deadline to post Collateral for Panhandle wind projects

Please refer to this earlier post for background on developer financial commitments for the panhandle CREZ if you don't know what has happened to date with this process, if you are familiar with the topic then read on...

These financial commitments that need to be made by developers working in the Panhandle seem to be the final hurdle. Once we get past this last hurdle then the rest of the transmission build-out should be rather smooth sailing.

Ten developers in the region have filed an intent to post collateral, all of them for a various number of Megawatts (MWs). At $10,000/MW it equaled out to approximately $126 million. An interim order was signed on April 21st of this year and the deadline for the developers to make the commitment is May 21, 2010. And if you didn't notice, that's coming up real soon. Be checking back from updates.

What's my conclusion?

Texas is showing the nation what it takes to be the state with the most wind energy development. Transmission build-out is moving forward, so stay informed and stay involved. Check back here for new information periodically.

You can always submit an anonymous question for us on our formspring page. Check it out, I'll be happy to answer any relevant inquires: www.formspring.me/cpwea

Until Next time...

Picture Perfect

It's been a while since our last post so I wanted to make sure that you all knew we were still kickin'! I wanted to share a couple of pictures that a CPWEA member (and previous board president) sent my way. These pictures were taken around the Sweetwater/Roscoe, Texas area which is home to the world's largest wind farm. It's just a few hours down the road from us.

And just a quick fact, the wind in our association's area is rated higher than the Sweetwater/Roscoe area. With our wind resources and the transmission lines that are going to be built soon it is very likely that our area will one day have more build out than our friends just south of here do. Let's all keep hoping and working to make that one day come soon!

Enjoy the pictures! And by the way, if you have any pictures of Texas wind farms that you would like to share, please don't hesitate to send them my way and I will get them posted.


Look at that farmland, look at that sky, look at those turbines! Ah, West Texas you are something else!

Until next time...

FAQs - We're making a list

Have you got a question about wind energy development? PERFECT, we've been wondering what questions you might have!

We're in the process of collecting questions so that we can provide a frequently asked questions list to those curious about wind energy development. Most of our members and potential members are landowners so the majority of the questions on the list will most likely reflect that fact, but we are willing to entertain any questions you may have. Are you curious about transmission expansion, royalties paid to landowners, who are the major players in wind development, what kind of due diligence has to be done before development, or something else? Our goal with this list is to cover all the bases of wind energy development and we'll use feedback to narrow the list down to those things that seems to be weighing most heavily on peoples' minds.

The second part of this task will be answering these questions. And once we get the list of questions together we'll be asking for your help to do that to. We are hoping to be as all inclusive as possible with these answers and would love to get your feedback on the questions list that we develop. So if you've been working in the wind industry and have some knowledge you would like to share, please check back for the FAQ list post and leave your input as a comment.

For the time being, please post your questions as a comment. We appreciate your help!

Until next time...

PR - Wind Expo Draws A Crowd

Here is our latest press release about last week's expo. Feel free to pass it on, put it in your publication or print a copy and carry it around in your pocket! :)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association
Kelly Ayers, Executive Director
(806) 983-2793
Kelly.j.ayers@gmail.com

Wind Expo Draws a Crowd

FLOYDADA, Texas, March 9, 2010– It was tough to find a parking space at the Unity Center in Floyd County on Thursday March 4th. The parking lot was at full capacity, packed with wind industry professionals who had booths at the event and others hoping to learn more about the industry and its future in the Texas panhandle.

The wind energy expo hosted by Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association brought in a crowd of nearly 300 people from across the South Plains. Attendees came to meet with developers, transmission companies, consultants and manufacturers as well as educational and advocacy groups working in wind energy.

“The event was well attended and a testament to the optimism of wind energy development in West Texas,” said the Floydada Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Justin Jaworski. “Floydada EDC is currently working to help develop a proper incentive program for wind farms and looks forward to assisting this process in the near future.”

Local companies in the Texas Panhandle such as Turbines Over Texas and Alternative Energy Specialties were hoping to use CPWEA’s wind energy expo to promote their products and services.

Randy Craig is an associate professor of biology at Wayland Baptist University in Plainview, but three years ago he began building a residential wind turbine with other local residents. Craig and the Turbines Over Texas crew had the turbine that they are currently manufacturing on display at the expo.

“Through much trial and error we feel that we have achieved a small-wind residential, rural turbine that will allow more people to assist with rising electrical costs and reduce their carbon foot-print on the Earth,” Craig said. “The expo was an opportunity for our small manufacturing company to increase the awareness of our wind turbine company and its presence in Hale County, Texas.”

Alternative Energy Specialties located in Abernathy, Texas also had an exhibit at the event. Their exhibit featured a patent pending meteorological tower (often times referred to as a met tower) that they manufacture locally.

“Our Tall-Tilt™ 60 thru 80 meter met towers are patent pending technology and were designed and engineered by a local team here in the Lubbock area in 2009,” said Glenn Van Slyke, a member of the Alternative Energy Specialties team. “It was beneficial to be in the same venue with the companies that use our products since what we provide is in place, and many times gone, long before power is generated by a turbine.”

Hill Country Wind Power is one of the developers that local representatives like Van Slyke were happy to see at the event. HCWP develops small to mid-sized wind farms. They are a non-traditional wind farm developer as they focus on selling retail electricity from their projects to large end-users like co-ops, school districts and hospitals.

John McNair, director of land acquisitions at HCWP, said their focus was to take care of the landowner first. He noted that selling electricity at retail benefits landowners, investors and local communities.

“At the expo I met primarily with landowners in areas we are targeting, some who represented target areas as far as two and a half hours from the expo location,” McNair said. “That speaks volumes about what CPWEA is doing, facilitating the introduction of developers to landowners in the windiest areas of Texas.”

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Expo Aftermath

I'm going to take a quick break from working on a post-expo press release and share a couple pictures from the event last week. If for some reason you just can't wait to read some details about how the expo went you can check out this article that was posted on the Lubbock AJ's Web site the day after the event:

Wind Energy Expo shows local residents new profit opportunity

You can also check out a video about the event made by Justin Jaworski, executive director at the Floydada EDC: Floyd County Wind Expo. I am going to go ahead and ask that you excuse me for all the umms and other blunders as I talk in the video; I hope it doesn't scare you away from our blog for good! :) Thanks again Justin for the video.

Now for the pictures...

People from all over the South Plains came out for the event. This was the sign in table early on in the evening. People started pouring in even before the designated 5pm start time, but it was just fine, the exhibitors were ready to roll.

Tri Global Energy, out of Lubbock, Texas, was one of the 30 exhibitors at the event. Here are a couple of their representatives talking to attendees about their company. Their booth stayed busy all night and it wasn't just because of the candy bowls!

Here Cameron Fredkin, with Cross Texas Transmission, talks with attendees about the transmission lines that they have been chosen to build in the area as a part of the CREZ transmission build out.

Two of the most visual displays were Alternative Energy Specialties' meteorological tower and Turbines of Texas' small residential turbine. Both groups are local, out of Hale County Texas and we were more than happy to have them represented at the event.



The Unity Center in Muncy got quite busy as the expo got going. We had just around 300 attendees show up at the event! Check out this shot of all those great, great West Texas people!

Thank you to everyone that came out and made the event a success. A very special thank you to all the exhibitors, the CPWEA board of directors, Jon LaBaume at the Unity Center, Justin Jaworski at the Floydada EDC and everyone else who helped make this event possible.

Be looking for a press release about the event soon! Until next time...

Lubbock AJ Write-up

The Lubbock Avalanche Journal posted this on their Web site yesterday. Looking forward to seeing more about our upcoming expo in the Wednesday AJ!

Floyd County hosts first Wind Energy Expo

ALYSSA DIZON / AVALANCHE-JOURNAL

Monday, March 01, 2010

The recent snow and rain may help area producers save money on irrigation, but there is another natural source of income they could cash in on.

The Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association will host its first Wind Energy Expo to educate the public on the long-term benefits of wind energy in the South Plains.

The main benefactors of investing in wind energy in the region, but may not realize it, are landowners, said Justin Jaworski, executive director of the Floydada Economic Development Corporation.

“It’s a good way (for producers) to have supplemental income,” he said. “A way for them to be able to farm their land as they always have and make smart decisions about leasing out land to developers.”

Landowners, who lease their land to developers for wind turbines or transmission lines, will not use the energy generated on their land. Instead, they will generate money from the metropolitan areas that the energy is exported to and bring more money and business to West Texas, Jaworski said.

He said many people have already agreed to lease some of their land for wind energy development, and the expo will serve to further educate and prepare those individuals for future decisions.

Kelly Ayers, executive director for CPWEA, said this was the non-profit organization’s first big event that will bring wind energy developers and experts together with South Plains landowners.

Attendees will be able to meet energy developers, consultants, manufacturers and educators from Oklahoma, Amarillo, Big Spring, Sweetwater and Plainview.

While the majority of the CPWEA members live in Hale, Floyd and Motley counties, Ayers said the event is free and open to anyone interested in learning about or investing in wind energy.

By having the expo, Jaworski said members of the public can speak directly with the companies and get all of their questions answered.

“The more people, the more networking and connections, the faster things will happen,” he said.

Read more in Wednesday's Avalanche-Journal.

I found it here: http://www.lubbockonline.com/stories/030110/upd_569390548.shtml

I hope to see you all at the expo on Thursday!

PR - Over 20 Exhibits Expected at Upcoming Wind Expo

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association
Kelly Ayers, Executive Director
(806) 983-2793
Kelly.j.ayers@gmail.com

Over 20 Exhibits Expected at Upcoming Wind Expo

FLOYDADA, Texas, February 19, 2010 – The fourth of March is fast approaching and the number of exhibitors that will be present at the Wind Energy Expo in Muncy, Texas, continues to grow.

Over 20 companies or groups will be taking advantage of the opportunity to set up a booth free of charge at the expo hosted by Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association. The event to be held at the Floyd County Friends Unity Center will be free and open to the public from five until eight p.m.

Exhibitors include wind companies involved with on-site wind generation for your home, farm or business as well as companies interested in developing small, mid-size and large utility scale wind developments. Hill Country Wind Power, Tri Global Energy, P&K Wind Energy and Western Wind Turbines will all have representatives available to provide attendees with information about their companies and answer any questions landowners or community members might have.

Curtis King, director of investor relations at Tri Global Energy, will be one of the representatives present at the expo and he is excited to meet more local people and share with them Tri Global’s plan for developing wind and other renewable resources in the area.

“We will have a model of our newest small wind turbine set up at the event for people to check out,” King said. “This model, the Texas Wrangler, can help homes, ranches, farms and schools benefit from wind energy. We’ll also have information about big wind and other renewable development opportunities; we hope that people will come out and talk with us about those opportunities.”

Sharyland Utilities and Cross Texas Transmission who are both involved with the build out of the Competitive Renewable Energy Zones (CREZ) transmission lines will both have booths with available representatives at the event. Information will also be available from the Southwest Power Pool (SPP), the regional transmission organization which operates in the Texas panhandle and surrounding states.

Alternative Energy Institute, Texas Wind Energy Institute and Class 4 Winds will all have information important for landowners, community leaders and individuals interested in getting involved in many different aspects of the wind industry including the workforce.

Other companies that offer services within the wind industry who will be in attendance are
American Wind Capital, Underwood Law Firm, Kimley-Horn and Associates, Integra Wind Services, AKL Wind Energy Scouting and Land Services, Bureau Veritas, Silver Creek Farms, Anemometry Specialists, and Sage Oil Vac. Local entities that will be represented include the Plainview Chamber of Commerce and the Floydada Economic Development Corporation, who is a sponsor for the event. Justin Jaworski, executive director at the Floydada EDC hopes that this expo will create opportunities for the area.

“We want to do everything we can to support wind energy in Floyd County,” Jaworski said. “Dollar for dollar, it will have the greatest impact on the future of our economy than any other investment. Floydada EDC has been and will continue to support initiatives that will ensure our area is a prime destination for development.”

Interested parties still have time to sign up to have an information table or exhibit at the event. They can register for free by completing an exhibitor sign-up form which can be found on CPWEA’s Web site (www.caprockplainswind.com).

CPWEA is a non-profit landowner association working to connect landowners with developers in the wind industry. CPWEA’s goal is to recruit wind development to the region and help revitalize rural communities. Contact CPWEA by phone at (806) 983-2793 or by email at info@caprockplainswind.com.

###

The More the Merrier - Exhibitors

We almost have 20 companies signed up to have exhibits at our upcoming expo and we have plenty room for more. I welcome comments or suggestions on companies that we should try and get out to the event; just give me your suggestion and, if I haven't already, I will contact those companies you suggest. If you are involved in the wind industry and would like to be involved you can sign up for free and you don't have to have a big fancy booth to participate. Just a table with information about your company and a representative to answer questions works great for us! Fax or email me a sign up form if you're interested.

Now, you are probably wondering why I'm telling you all this again if you read my last blog post: Free Like the Wind. Well, I wanted to give you an update on the companies that will be there. In addition to those listed last time:

• Sharyland Utilities
  
• Cross Texas Transmission
• Tri Global Energy
• Hill Country Wind Power
• Bureau Veritas
• Integra Wind Services
• AKL Wind Energy Scouting
• Class 4 Winds
• Plainview Chamber of Commerce
• Underwood Law Firm
• Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc.

The following companies will be represented:

• Floydada EDC
• P&K Wind Energy
• Anemometry Specialists
• Sage Oil Vac
• Texas Wind Energy Institute
• American Wind Capital
• Silver Creek Farms
• Alternative Energy Institute - WTAMU

If you have a someone you would like to see at the event please leave your suggestion as a comment. I will do my best to get them there. Hope to see you all on March 4th!

Until Next Time...

Free Like The Wind

You may have seen our recent press releases or flyers (or at least I am hoping you have, I don't write these things for nothing you see)!! But just in case you haven't here's the deal. Our association (Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association) is hosting a Wind Energy Expo on March 4, 2010. And here is the kicker, it's all free. Free and open to the public, free for companies who want to set up exhibits, free for community leaders, free for landowners, free for people interested in working in the wind energy field, free for high school students, for college students, for babies... okay, I'll stop, I think you catch my drift... It's free! And excuse my corniness but I got really excited when the title for this blog popped into my head so you'll just have to go along with me on this one, I'll just mention it one last time: THE EVENT IS FREE, FREE LIKE THE WIND!

In all seriousness, the event is free because we want to get as many people involved with the wind industry out to meet and network with local landowners and community leaders. Not to mention provide a venue wherein people within the industry can network amongst themselves. The goal is to spur development in our area and hopefully in return bring something back to the local communities.

Here's a little taste of some of the companies that have signed up to have a booth:

• Sharyland Utilities
  
• Cross Texas Transmission
• Tri Global Energy
• Hill Country Wind Power
• Bureau Veritas
• Integra Wind Services
• AKL Wind Energy Scouting
• Class 4 Winds
• Plainview Chamber of Commerce
• Underwood Law Firm
• Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc.

And several more are in the works! It's not too late to be included either. If you are interested in being involved you can find an Exhibitor Sign-up Form on our Web site. And as always never hesitate to call the office if you have questions: (806) 983-2793.

For more information about the expo check out our Flyer or Press Release. And feel free to pass along this information to anyone that might be interested in attending.

Until next time...

Transmission Summit Tidbits

I titled this post tidbits for two reasons:

1. This entry would be way to long if I tried to tell you everything that went on last week at the Transmission Summit in Sweetwater, Texas. So long in fact that you would probably look at it and think no way I'm reading all of that and move on, and nobody wants that.

2. I am going to go into detail about what I learned at the summit in this month's newsletter that goes out to all of our members. So if you're a member, you can it there; if you're not a member you can find a membership application here:
http://www.caprockplainswind.com/htm/membership.html.
Sorry I couldn't pass up the opportunity, but if you want more information about memberships check out the web site and if you still have questions shoot me an email or give me a call.

Now, down to business...
The Transmission Summit held last Thursday and Friday was put on by the Texas Wind Energy Clearinghouse and featured speakers from several transmission service providers building CREZ lines as well as representatives from Southwest Power Pool, Tres Amigas, ERCOT and several others.

Here are a couple of the things that were discussed that I thought were the most relevant to our immediate area.

• Developer financial commitments for panhandle CREZs

Cameron Fredkin, director of project development, gave an overview of what has happened concerning the the PUCT's recent docket (#37567) which asked developers in the Panhandle A and B zones to post collateral in order to justify the build out of transmission lines in the area. If you want more background on the issue check out topic # 3 on our previous blog entry: Texas Renewables.

The PUCT asked wind developers to post collateral for 50% of the capacity for each Panhandle zone. Existing operations in the zones that are connected to the ERCOT grid were counted as collateral and after the initial letters of intent were revised the PUCT did receive 50% commitment for each zone in the form of letters of intent (actual collateral will have to be posted at a later date).

Developers who were involved in the process include: Scandia, Higher Power, Horizon, Clipper, Cielo, Pattern, E.On, Iberdrola, RES, and Invenergy. Some developers didn't participate in the process, but this doesn't exclude them from moving forward with developments.

• Sharyland/Cross Texas transmission line progress

It seemed like a common theme from both of the TSPs working in our area that for the most part landowners have been pretty easy to work with throughout the process. Both companies have been holding open meeting throughout the area and getting landowner input so that they can put together line routes.

Right now Cross Texas has public meetings scheduled for January 26th, 27th and 28th in Turkey, Childress and Silverton, respectively. Check out their Web site for more detailed information about the routes they are currently looking at: http://www.crosstexas.com/teslasilverton.htm. The PUCT filing date for this line is July 5th, 2010. The line could be potentially located in any of the following counties: Briscoe, Floyd, Hall, Motley, Childress, and Cottle.

Sharyland plans to file their CCN for their Silverton to Cottonwood line would could potentially pass through Briscoe, Floyd, Dickens and Motley Counties in May of this year. Sharyland was selected to build 4 substations in the panhandle located close to Silverton, White Deer, Nazareth and Hereford. All of the land for the stations have been selected and options have been signed. Each option is for a section of land or 640 acres, giving Sharyland the option to expand the subs as more wind comes on line. Sharyland is on schedule to energize all of their lines sometime summer or fall 2013. Once the lines are energized developers should be able to connect with in six months.

• City of Garland intervening in CREZ process

Last week was the first I had heard of the City of Garland intervening in the CREZ process. Many people are concerned that these proceedings will slow down the development process. There was only brief mention of the topic at the summit, but when I made it back to the office Monday morning I found that my Google reader list (side note: if you don't use Google reader to follow blogs and key words in the news, well, you definitely should) had several news articles concerning the City of Garland and the PUCT. Here are a couple so you can read about the issue in more depth:

$5B Wind Plan Back in PUC's Lap

Judge orders halt to work on wind transmission project

• SPP transmission plans

It was nice to hear about SPP's plans for transmission expansion. We have heard so much lately about the CREZ process that it is nice to know that another grid operator is looking to tap into our wind rich region. $3.2 billion worth of transmission improvements have been approved at SPP. They are hoping to create a collector system that will be able to take some of the wind energy generated in the Panhandle of Texas into the Eastern grid. Included in their currently approved portfolio of transmission expansion projects is a 345 kV line that will stretch from Mooreland, OK to just north of Abernathy, TX into the Tuco substation.

SPP has plans for more transmission expansion, but they have yet to be approved. There is a lot in store for the future of wind development in the panhandle of Texas.

Until next time...

The Future of Agriculture

If you were a member of your high school's FFA chapter chances are you remember having to memorize the National FFA Creed. Its the first thought that I had when I starting working on this blog entry. I remember a good chunk of it, but I had to go and look it up to fill in some of the holes in my memory. It's been a long time since I have taken a real close look at the ole creed and looking back I must say that while I memorized the words in high school I don't think that I paid close enough attention to the meaning behind the words.

Looking back, the creed in general is very enlightening stating things like, "...the promise of better days through better ways..." and "...the ability of progressive agriculturalists to serve our own and the public interest..."

Little did I know back then how relevant those words would be to me. In high school I had never laid eyes on a wind turbine (yes, I had seen a wind mill, but not one of the modern day giant energy producers) and most definitely hadn't considered working in the industry. Today that is quite different. I have been at Caprock Plains Wind Energy Association for almost exactly a year now and continue to be intrigued by wind development and the opportunities that it offers to agriculture.

Wind energy development offers so much to landowners and farmers in rural areas who work so hard to make a living. For many farmers having wind development on their land simply means a supplemental income that allows them to keep doing what they have always done with their land. Wind development will in general only occupy 3 to 8 percent of the land. It means just as much to rural communities as well providing local jobs and increased tax bases.

While all of this is pretty new it seems like its offering a pretty bright future to agriculturists, but it's important to stop and wonder just what people are thinking about this and other trends happening in the agricultural industry. I recently received an invitation to participate in the planning process for a new research project. The purpose of the project is to find out what people's beliefs, opinions, and attitudes are towards current trends in the industry like wind development, water management and carbon sequestration. My role is going to be contributing questions we have for our target audiences so that the research can provide as much use to people throughout different areas of agriculture. I'm thinking general things like:

• Do you support wind energy development?
• If presented with the option would you lease your land out for wind energy development?
• Do you believe that wind energy is a viable electric generation option for the future?
• Have you been contacted by a wind energy developer? What was your opinion of them?
• What do you think wind energy development will mean for farming and ranching in your area?
• What are your concerns with having wind energy development on your land?

These are just a few that I came up with, but I wanted to open it up for suggestions. If you are curious about a specific topic concerning wind energy or the future of agriculture in general for your area please post it as a comment to the blog and I will take it with me to the planning session for this important new research project.

I believe in the future of agriculture and am optimistic about what the future brings. Until next time...