Photo: Brian Harkin for the NYT
Wind power is lightyears further in Texas than anywhere else in America. The state’s wind farms produce 25% of the country’s wind power, or 5,316mW of energy, more than double its nearest competitor California (which produces 2,438mW). Texas boasts the Horse Hollow Wind Energy Center, the world’s largest wind farm, and T. Boone Pickens’ $12bn dollar windfarm which is hoping to take that title upon completion in 2014. The large, arid planes produce strong winds and farmers are happy to lease their land for turbines. With falling development costs and increased interest, turbines in remote planes can harvest huge amounts of energy. There’s a slight problem with these distant windfarms though, how will all that energy reach urban areas thousands of miles away where it’s needed?
As this USA Today article pointed out in February 2008, Texas’ output was set to outstrip transmission capacity by 65% by the end of this year. A vicious circle was created by utility companies unwilling to lay down lines which may not carry any juice, and electricity companies unwilling to build power plants until they could be assured of transmission lines. Tom Smith, director of the Texas office of the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, called Texas’ current transmission lines a “two-lane dirt road”.
It’s good news for everyone, then, that Texas’ Public Utility Commission (PUC) has agreed to build a $5bn transmission super highway to boost the state’s transmission capacity to 18,000 mW, enough to power four million homes. The lines are expected to be in service within four or five years and will be paid for by Texas electric customers paying about $4 more on their bills each month. In an article at MSNBC Smith called that a small price to pay for clean energy.
Texas is leading the way, but will states like California follow? With clear state support and private backers like Boone moving in to wind, could Big Oil pave way for Big Wind? The answer, readers, is blowing in the wind.
