by Bruce Goodman

With a $1.4 million DOE grant in hand and a request for a $2.0 million MPSC grant pending, Grand Valley State University is preparing to issue a Request for Proposal for a Lake Michigan offshore meteorological tower and research platform.  The RFP will be seeking a partner ready to contribute the additional resources needed and take responsibility for siting, designing, and constructing the project.  It is expected that the site selected for the project will be favorably suited for a future utility scale wind energy project.

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by Bruce Goodman

There are a number of factors identified as impediments to the robust development of offshore wind energy projects in the Great Lakes.  Amoung those most often cited are the following:

• inadequate data on wind speed over one year and over many years;
• the need for strong transmission lines from the lakes to the major populations centers;
• electrical rates in some areas  that are at a level to make wind power not competitive;
• lack of data on how winter ice flows will affect the wind turbine towers;
• the lack of large work ships needed for the construction of wind turbine towers in deep water;
• lake depths at distances offshore beyond line of sight;
• uncertainty in the regulatory system for the permits needed to begin construction; and
• incomplete studies on migratory bird patterns needed to help determined where offshore wind farms can be located

 Until each of these issues is addressed by government or project developers it is unlikely that the Great Lakes will see the rapid development of wind energy predicted by many.  Yet this is, without a doubt, the area of greatest wind resources for the Great Lakes States (and Canada).

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Attorney Bruce Goodman

DELEG has funded the installation of anemometers to measure wind speeds on five towers across the state. MSU will collect the data from the towers in Gratiot, Delta, Antrim, Mason and Hillsdale counties and make the data accessible to the public online. The measurements will be taken at three heights, one of which will be as high as 100 meters. The data will be collected for at least one year.

The State of Michigan is doing what it can to encourage wind project developers to work on projects within the state.  The full impact of the renewable portfolio standard is still a few years away, and prices for power purchase agreements with state utilities are barely high enough to finance a wind farm.  Nonetheless, more wind data will be helpful.  Moreover, to the extent this data can be correlated to offshore wind data the long term impact is most likely to be to encourage in the lake projects.

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 by Bruce Goodman

Developers Havgul Clean Energy and Scandia Wind Offshore are considering a 100 square mile area of Lake Michigan near Ludington for a $3 billion, 1000 MW offshore wind farm. After meeting with Mason and Oceana county officials, the team held a well-attended public meeting on December 15 to explain the details of the proposed project which would be located approximately 2-4 miles offshore between Pentwater and Ludington. Relying on wind statistics collected from lighthouses, they selected the location for its combination of grid access (Ludington Pumped Storage Plant), wind resource, proximity to major load centers, and favorable water depths.

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by Bruce Goodman

Grand Valley State University is preparing to utilize a $1.4 million Department of Energy grant to measure wind speed and other parameters at a yet to be determined offshore location in Lake Michigan. The data collection platform will supply year-round wind data (at elevation) that previously has been unavailable. [NOAA buoys measuring winds at lake level are removed from November through March each year.] The target date for installation is the fall of 2010. Studies from AWEA show that the wind potential of Lake Michigan is in the range of 4 to 6 wind class (with 7 being the highest).

The next step is the acquisition of additional funding.  An MPSC grant is out for bid that could increase the available seed money by $2 million.  The rest of the funds for the estimated $6.8 million project will need to come from private sources.  It is expected that one or more wind developers will contribute to “scope out” a likely location for an offshore wind farm.

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by Bruce Goodman

Math has always been my friend:  it is certain, reliable, and precise. It can predict when train #2 will overtake train #1. In the realm of wind energy it explains why offshore is better than onshore. Wind energy is the product of [(air density) x (2 x turbine blade length)² x (wind speed)³].  Therefore wind turbines are most powerful if the weather is colder, the blade longer, and the wind blows harder. During the peak loads of summer, winds over the lakes are more dense than over the land. Larger turbine blades can be floated to locations than can be railed or trucked. And offshore winds in Michigan are stronger than the winds over land. Despite high installation and maintenance costs the exponents will make all the difference in bringing offshore wind to Michigan.  Ahoy matey.

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by Bruce Goodman

A road map for the development of offshore wind energy resources in the Great Lakes was handed to Governor Granholm by the Michigan Great Lakes Wind Council in early September. The report finds that 20% of the state owned bottomlands in the lakes has a depth of 30 meters or less, which makes it practicable for offshore wind farms.  Among its recommendations, the report suggests a 6-mile buffer zone from ordinary shorelines and a 13-mile buffer from national park shorelines, as well as listing other unsuitable development areas. It recommends that the state consider financial incentives for developers, such as tax incentives, grants, pricing, cost recovery guarantees, and favorable bottomlands lease rates. The report identifies “lessons learned” from experiences in other countries, and recommends that the Council’s life be extended through September 1, 2010 to continue its work.  That recommendation has been accepted and future meetings have been scheduled.

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