MANCHESTER, Vt. (AP) – A wind developer plans to seek a permit this fall to install wind turbines on Little Equinox Mountain.

Endless Energy Corp. of Yarmouth, Maine, wants to install five 260-foot wind turbines, with 130-foot blades on the mountain. The turbines are expected to produce more than 30 million kilowatt-hours of electricity a year for the Burlington Electric Department.

Representatives of the company plan to meet with planning boards in Manchester Village, Sandgate and Sunderland, as well as the Bennington County Regional Commission to talk about the project.

Earlier delays in the project occurred because the company was unable to find a path for power lines to connect with a station near Route 7. Endless Energy has since decided to use existing lines and place others underground.

Harley Lee, president of Endless Energy, predicted that project’s aesthetic impact would be insignificant.

“Power lines are ugly and Vermont is beautiful,” he said. “But one of the great beauties of this project is that there are already roads and lines running up to the mountain top.”

Manchester Village officials are concerned about how the towers will impact the landscape.

“The aesthetic reaction is negative,” said Edward Eaton, president of the village trustees. “The turbines are not exactly a beautiful object to stick upon the hill.”

He acknowledged that there are several sides to the debate, mentioning that wind energy will likely cut fuel costs.

Several years ago, Endless Energy erected three wind measurement towers on the mountain. Last year, the company sought and received an extension of its permit, because of problems with equipment and a lightning strike. That permit remains in effect until Dec. 31, 2006.

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