Onshore Wind Power
Wind resources are one of the fastest growing resources in the United States. Dominion considers onshore wind resources as a means of meeting the RPS goals, REPS requirements, and potentially as a cost-effective stand-alone resource in the future. The suitability of this resource is highly dependent on locating a site with significant wind resources, as well as wind energy’s competitiveness with other types of electric generation facilities such as those using nuclear or fossil fuels.
These facilities tend to operate at times that are non-coincidental with peak system conditions and therefore generally achieve a capacity contribution significantly lower than their nameplate ratings. It is important to note that potentially economical wind farms in the Eastern portion of the United States are currently limited and available only in specialized locations where the wind resources are strong, such as on certain mountain ridges in Virginia.
Virginia Wind Projects
Dominion is pursuing three projects in Virginia on mountain ridges, including a previously announced project in Tazewell County. Dominion is also evaluating two additional undisclosed sites in the state. Dominion’s sites are in the early development stages and, accordingly, project size, timing and other details are not yet known. If constructed in the future, these Virginia facilities would add to Dominion’s existing portfolio of operating wind farms.
West Virginia Wind Facility (NedPower Mount Storm)
Dominion entered a joint venture agreement with Shell WindEnergy Inc. in December 2006 to develop the first phase of a wind facility near Dominion's Mt. Storm Power Station in Grant County, West Virginia, about 120 miles west of Washington, D.C. In July 2007, Dominion and Shell WindEnergy Inc. announced plans for the second phase of the project.
NedPower Mount Storm is now fully operational, generating up to 264 megawatts of electricity from a renewable energy source for the mid-Atlantic power grid.
The project consists of 132 wind turbines along 12 miles of the Allegheny Front, and can generate enough electricity to serve about 66,000 homes and businesses.
The electricity generated by the wind turbines flows across power lines from Mount Storm Power Station. Some of the electricity will also flow over a new 500,000-volt transmission line that Dominion completed to increase the supply and reliability in Northern Virginia.
Indiana Wind Power Project
In 2008, Dominion acquired a joint-ownership interest in the Fowler Ridge Wind Farm, which is located in Benton County, Indiana, about 90 miles northwest of Indianapolis.
Dominion and BP Wind Energy are joint-owners of Fowler Ridge Phase I, consisting of 301.3 megawatts, which entered commercial operation in April of 2009.
Illinois Wind Power Project
Dominion announced in April 2008 that it plans to build a 300-megawatt wind generation facility in Central Illinois. The Prairie Fork Wind Farm would be composed of 150 to 200 turbines constructed across approximately 25,000 acres in Christian and Montgomery counties, about 25 miles southeast of Springfield. The company’s 1,158-megawatt coal-fired Kincaid Power Station is located just north of the Prairie Fork site. This project is in the early development stages and, accordingly, project timing and other details are not yet known.
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