Tours of wind power project offered

KIBBY TOWNSHIP — TransCanada Corp. will hold a grand opening celebration of its Kibby Wind Power Project for invited guests only on Friday.

However, there will be a chance for members of the public to get a tour as well at another time, project spokesman Tobey Williamson said Wednesday.

To set up a tour of the site, people may call 1-877-943-3367.

Nearly half of the project's 44 wind turbines are now operational, providing clean energy to the New England power grid, according to a news release.

The $320 million, 132 megawatt Kibby Wind Power Project is the largest wind power development in New England, according to the company.

It is providing renewable electricity for the equivalent of 50,000 average-sized Maine homes, a release stated.

TransCanada plans to have half of the 44 turbines in service this year, with the remaining turbines going on line in 2010.

TransCanada has spent more than $75 million in U.S. dollars on materials, labor and services in Maine, with nearly $6 million spent in Franklin County, the release states. The project has also supported approximately 300 construction jobs, 90 percent of which have gone to Maine residents. Eight people, mostly from Franklin County, now have full-time jobs maintaining the turbines and overseeing local operations, the release stated.

dperry@sunjournal.com

Stay informed — Get the news delivered for free in your inbox.

I'm interested in ...

In order to make comments, you must verify your account.

In order to comment on SunJournal.com, you must use your real name and include the town in which you live in your profile. A member of our staff will call you to verify this information. To join in, fill out your user profile completely and check the box "please verify my status." We'll get back to you within one business day to verify your account.

Login or create an account here.

Our policy prohibits comments that are:

  • Defamatory, abusive, obscene, racist, or otherwise hateful
  • Excessively foul and/or vulgar
  • Inappropriately sexual
  • Baseless personal attacks or otherwise threatening
  • Contain illegal material, or material that infringes on the rights of others
  • Commercial postings attempting to sell a product/item
If you violate this policy, your comment will be removed and your account may be banned.

Advertisement

Displaying comments, from newest to oldest

Blueyes1119's picture
verified

Why don't believe the

Why don't believe the propaganda of the company? Here's a good example: The wind industry loves to tie the maximum output on the nameplate of the turbines to the equivalent number of homes in Maine it can power. Again, according to the US Energy Information Office, in 2007 the installed wind turbines for the previous year averaged out at 27% of their capacity. Even if Kibby outperformed the average and output was 30%, then that translates to 15,000 typical homes, not 50,000. They also never explain the intermittent, unreliable, unpredictable nature of wind energy requires "spinning reserves" of baseline generation so the lights don't go out when the wind stops blowing. Wind energy is an incredibly expensive fad.

Blueyes1119's picture
verified

What a travesty that these

What a travesty that these beautiful mountains are being destroyed so the investors can raid the public treasury to reap subsidies. The taxpayers subsidize this scam to the tune of $23.37 per megawatt (as of 2007, US Energy Information Office). Without heavy subsidies and preferential treatment, this unreliable, intermittent, and inefficient wind industry would not exist. We are destroying rural Maine for nothing that benefit Mainers; don't believe the propaganda that the company puts out.

Advertisement