--LEEDCo, Bechtel, and GE build wind farm pilot project on Lake Erie--
Even though this is not breaking news by any means, I figured it was worthy to mention in the sustainable construction news blog with some updated insight to the project. The Lake Erie Energy Corporation (LEEDCo) is teaming up with General Electric and Bechtel Corporation to build a 20MW wind farm on Lake Erie.
As a Pennsylvania native, I was ecstatic to hear of a wind energy project on Lake Erie, but was disappointed to hear that the wind farm will be located in Ohio. On second thought, Erie, PA and its surround areas do not necessarily have the infrastructure to conveniently accept the alternative energy supply to the grid. Understandably, the project becomes more feasible and attractive when it is located 10 miles offshore from Cleveland. In addition, Ohio has alternative energy initiatives that require 25% of energy consumption to come from clean energy sources.
The alternative energy project will consist of installing GE’s next generation 4MW wind turbines, and tying the supplied energy back to the grid onshore. The 20MW production should prove useful to the economy of the Industrial Valley nearby, who has now be driven to increase manufacturing of wind energy project components. This pilot project is only the beginning of a state-wide push to generate more alternative energy.
LEEDCo expects to continue the project in several phases to increase the wind energy capacity of the Lake Erie project to 1,000 MW by 2020.
