Noutati | Eficienţa Energetică

http://www.newenergyworldnetwork.com/renewable-energy-news/by-technology/wind/cape-wind-to-sell-wind-power-at-above-market-prices.html

Massachusetts state power companies are concerned that the proposed Cape Wind offshore wind farm will sell power at above-market prices.

Parties opposing the first US offshore wind development have called for the state government to reassess the power prices Cape Wind has arranged with the National Grid.
Power transmission network National Grid predicts that the deal it has struck for the offshore project will cost its customers $1.2bn more than the projected market price of electricity from similar sources when it is complete, according to reports.
Another one of the state’s largest power companies, NStar, has also revealed that its contracts with onshore wind projects are significantly below market price.
While National Grid has spoken of the benefits of the power supply deal it has arranged with Cape Wind, opposing parties have reportedly claimed the project is an unnecessary burden for ratepayers.
Nevertheless, National Grid has sung the praises of the proposed offshore wind farm for its proximity to the coast and its large size. Close to 130 wind turbines are due to be erected near Nantucket Sound imminently in the first phase of the offshore wind project’s construction.
The power transmission company said it will be nigh on impossible for it to secure the level of renewable power it must deliver under state mandates without the contribution of the proposed project.
Massachusetts power companies are mandated to source an increasing proportion of electricity from renewable energy producers under state law. The state demands that its power companies source one fifth of their electricity from renewable energy resources by 2025.
The construction of Cape Wind is estimated to cost $2.62bn, according to state government projections. The project is anticipated to power close to 200,000 households in normal wind conditions, but critics have claimed it could be built at a smaller size.
The National Grid has secured a 15-year contract with Cape Wind, under which it will pay 18.7 cents per kWh for electricity from the wind project in its first year of operation, according to reports. This price is then set to increase by 3.5 per cent each year thereafter