Thursday, April 9, 2009

First Wind lines up Maine wind projects

By Mass High Tech Staff

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Independent wind power developer First Wind Inc. plans to build a 51 megawatt wind project -- enough to power more than 20,000 homes -- in Oakfield, Maine, the Newton-based company announced, following a permit application filing with the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.

The project, dubbed the Oakfield Wind Project, could use up to 34 General Electric Co. 1.5 megawatt wind turbines. It would be the second wind project for the company in Maine’s Aroostook County, following the 42 megawatt Mars Hill Wind Project. According to First Wind, the Oakfield Wind Project is expected to use local workers in design, engineering and construction, and to contribute to a tax reduction for the town, a similar outcome that Mars Hill experienced when the company built a wind project there.

First Wind has also filed a permit application to build its Rollins Wind Project, a 60 megawatt wind project near Lincoln, Maine. The company has also built a 57 megawatt Stetson Wind Project in Maine’s Washington County, for which it has been given Maine Land Use Regulation Commission to add 25.5 megawatts.

First Wind was originally founded in 1995 as UPC Wind. Last August, the company filed documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission expressing its intent to execute a $450 million initial public offering, though no offering date or share price has been announced.

According to its filings, the company has set a goal of reaching approximately 1,100 megawatts of operating capacity by the end of 2010 and 2,300 megawatts by 2013.