“uåX˜äŠÊ˜·³Ç

Two US wind developers are jointly planning a 30.6 MW repowering of the Buena Vista project in Altamont Pass by July 2002. Enxco's Dennis Scullion says his company and Zilkha “uåX˜äŠÊ˜·³Ç are also considering repowering other wind stations in the pass. Whether the partners move ahead on any of their plans could depend on an application to California's Power Authority for a power purchase agreement and the results of the latest California Energy Commission (CEC) auction of renewables contracts (“uåX˜äŠÊ˜·³Ç, February 2001). The CEC's Renewable Resource Account will add up to $0.01/kWh on the selling price, Scullion says. The partners will replace 105 of Buena Vista's 179, 200-300 kW Windmaster turbines with 34, 900 kW turbines. Scullion says they are favouring Enron technology, but the decision has yet to be made. They will leave in place 11 MW of Windmaster, Danwin and Nordtank turbines. Landowners and the county government favour the project, but it still needs to go through other approvals, including environmental and Federal Aviation Administration approvals, says Scullion. Altamont Pass has avian issues (“uåX˜äŠÊ˜·³Ç, July 2000) that he is unsure can be solved with fewer and taller turbines.