Update: Carcieri urges talks on offshore wind to resume
11:50 AM Fri, Oct 16, 2009 | Permalink
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The Carcieri administration is urging National Grid and Deepwater Wind to resume negotiations over an agreement for the utility to buy electricity from a wind farm proposed off Block Island. In a filing with the state Public Utilities Commission late Thursday, National Grid rejected Deepwater's proposal to sell green energy to the power grid, saying that the price would be three times the cost of electricity generated from fossil fuels and other sources. On Friday, Amy Kempe, spokeswoman for Governor Carcieri, said Deepwater's offshore wind projects are too important to Rhode Island to fail. She said the governor has personally told both sides to continue talks. "The message was, 'Sit in a room and hammer this out,' " Kempe said. She continued, "This project and industry are critically important to Rhode Island. Rhode Island has the opportunity to site the first offshore wind farm in the United States. We believe the technology and the industry will prove to be extremely important to the state's economic development. Rhode Island will reap long-term benefits, not just for economic development and jobs, but also for the ratepayer." The filing, submitted by National Grid late Thursday afternoon to meet a deadline set by a new state law, does not signal an end to talks between the two sides, but it does represent a setback for Deepwater. The start-up company needs a contract not just because it would guarantee a buyer for its electricity, but also because such an agreement would help attract additional financing for its two projects in Rhode Island. Deepwater first plans to install up to eight turbines three miles off the Block Island coast by 2012, and will follow that demonstrator project with a much larger wind farm with about 100 turbines at least 15 miles from the Rhode Island shore. The smaller wind farm would supply alternative energy directly to Block Island, which relies on diesel generators for power and has some of the highest electricity rates in the country. But David Graves, a spokesman for National Grid, said the rates from the wind farm would also be high. The utility's calculations put the cost at 30.7 cents per kilowatt-hour, compared to 9.2 cents per kilowatt-hour for electricity from other sources, he said. Deepwater estimates the sale price to be closer to 20 to 25 cents per kilowatt-hour, and said the added cost would be spread among ratepayers throughout the state and would have a minimal impact on their bills. Company executives point to the positive environmental effects of investing in green energy. "We do recognize it's a little more expensive, but the benefits of this are inescapable," said Paul Rich, Deepwater's chief development officer. According to the energy law signed last June by Governor Carcieri, the Public Utilities Commission can arbitrate talks between National Grid and alternative energy developers. The commission has until Dec. 31 to either approve or reject a contract proposal. The original version of this story was posted at 7:25 a.m. 
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Gee, what shocking news. In this state Anti-Trust laws don't apply to National Grid. Why would they partner w/ Deepwater Wind when they can sell both natural gas & electricity without recourse here in Rogue Island? The PUC is in their back pocket & the Governor's a toothless tiger.
One possible solution exists at the consumer level. Instead of developing off-shore windfarms, individual homeowners should be given an economic incentives to install photovoltaic systems & small wind turbines on their properties. Screw "National Monopoly".
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no thanks we pay too much now for electricity.
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I'd pay more for green energy. Sooner or later it's going to cost us even more if we do nothing now. There is no longer a cheap alternative, failure to do anything will mean diaster later. We need to bite the bullet now before it gets too big to deal with.
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Wind power costs are competitive with the latest coal and gas power plants. The fact that these are being built out in the ocean has to be driving the costs much higher.
We have plenty of land to build these with high winds where costs would be considerably lower.
The GA needs to take the 1.65 megawatt restriction on municipalities producing their own power.
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You mean, National Grid is complaining because of high utility costs? They don't like it that they might have to pay more for power? And the government is not interested in their argument?
Poetic justice and most supreme irony: thy name is Don Carcieri.
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is 30.7 cents alot?
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Anyone that wants to pay triple the cost can have mine and pay for it too. I'll give you green.
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