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$ 5 Billion
Wind
Transmission Projects in Texas
Texas leads the country in wind power production, but
is in urgent need of more transmission lines to carry the increased
capacity.
Texas regulators
last week identified 13 companies that will build transmission lines
to aid wind power production in the state, as reported in
Texas newspapers.
Texas
leads the country in wind production, with close to three times
as much wind capacity as the second-place state, Iowa. But with wind
farms sprouting up so quickly, building more transmission lines has
become an urgent priority for the state.
The
nearly $5 billion in transmission investment will result in
around 2,400 miles of lines, which will bring power from remote
windy areas in the western part of the state to cities like Dallas
and Houston that need the power.
Subject to final
approvals, transmission companies like
Oncor, which is slated for a $1.3 billion segment, and
Electric Transmission Texas, which has been given a $789 million
piece, will pay the up-front costs — although that will clearly pose
a challenge in the current credit crunch.
The companies will
recoup the money later from customers.
As my colleague
Matthew L. Wald has
reported, lack of transmission is an issue across the country,
causing some wind farms to close down even when there is plenty of
wind.
Texas’s effort —
which involves breaking the state into zones and asking developers
to compete to build the lines — is being closely watched by other
states, like those in the
Western Governors Association.
However, such
efforts are easier in Texas — a unitary market with its own grid
system — than they are in other areas that must route transmission
across state lines.
New York Times
February 2, 2009,
12:45 pm
Eolico: 5mld di dollari
in Texas per le connessioni elettriche
Il Boom
dell'eolico Usa nel Texas ha mandato fuori uso la rete di
trasmissione elettrica, spingendo il governo Texano a finanziare con
5 miliardi di dollari nuovi lavori sulle connessioni elettriche. I
Km di trasmissione realizzati saranno circa 4.700. Tutto fa parte di
un progetto enorme che vede l'eolico e le regioni ventose nell'ovest
del Texas come protagoniste, e che porterà energia nelle città più
popolose dello stato. Negli Usa il Texas è lo stato che produce più
energia dal vento con una capacità installata di 7mila MW, dopo di
lui l'Iowa con quasi 3mila MW e la California con 2500 MW.
(F.
Baglivi)
www.ambienteenergia.it
31
gennaio 2009 ore 8:39 |
