The United States Department of Energy guaranteed a $102 million loan for the 50.6 megawatt Record Hill wind project in Maine, expected to generate about 200 jobs during construction.
The wind farm project, to be developed and managed by Wagner Wind Energy I, L.L.C. of New Hampshire and Independence Wind, L.L.C. of Maine, can contribute to the state’s attainment of a 40 percent renewable energy target by 2017.
The loan guarantee finalization follows a conditional commitment awarded for the project last March. Apart from the Energy department funding, the project is supported by a Yale University Endowment fund.
The university endowment supports environment studies and the Yale Investments Office, which has invested in green technology ventures such as solar, wind, and biofuels.
Developers of the Record Hill Wind project will use the funding to install the project’s 22 2.3-MW Siemens wind turbines, and to construct an 8-mile transmission line and related interconnection equipment near Roxbury town, in Oxford County.
The new transmission lines will be interconnected with the local utility Central Maine Power.
The Siemens turbines will be installed for the wind farm with Turbine Load Control technology. The system will be equipped with sensors and processing software that allows the turbines to continue generating electricity under turbulent conditions, instead of shutting down.
The technology is also expected to reduce wear-and-tear on the turbines, reduce operation and management costs, and preserve the lifetime of the turbine components.
The Record Hill wind project will cut down over 70,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions every year, equal to the yearly greenhouse gas emissions from over 13,000 passenger vehicles.
While Maine is already sourcing 32 percent of its energy from renewables, only 0.4 percent of this comes from wind power, according to the Natural Resources Council of Maine. Most of the state’s renewable energy comes from hydropower at 26 percent, followed by 4 percent from biomass and 2 percent from solid waste, the council reported.
