Governor Carcieri today named five members to an advisory panel that will select a contractor to build a wind energy project off the shores of Rhode Island. The Wind Energy Proposal Evaluation Team will include several state energy and economic development officials, as well as the dean of the URI Graduate School of Oceanography, Dr. David Farmer.

For more details, click on "More..."

The Wind Energy Proposal Evaluation Team includes:

Dr. David Farmer, Dean of the Graduate School of Oceanography at the University of Rhode Island;
Andrew Dzykewicz, Commissioner of the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources;
Thomas F. Ahern, Administrator of the Division of Public Utilities and Carriers;
Saul Kaplan, Executive Director of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation; and
Christopher Long, Policy Analyst in the Governor’s office.

"The selection of the team to evaluate the seven wind farm proposals that were submitted last week is another important step in our march towards bringing wind power to Rhode Island,” Governor Carcieri said. "The members of this team will represent and evaluate a broad array of concerns. Tom Ahern will represent the interests of Rhode Island ratepayers, while Saul Kaplan will work to ensure that this project fits with the state’s economic development plans. And with the inclusion of Dr. Farmer from the URI Graduate School of Oceanography, we can be sure that we are taking into consideration all the elements that will be important for selecting the best project.”

In 2006, Governor Carcieri announced an ambitious plan to increase the use of renewable sources of energy to generate 20 percent of the state’s electricity needs. It was expected that approximately 15 percent would be derived from wind energy.

In June 2007, the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources received the results of a report it had commissioned to determine the best locations for the development of wind energy projects. The report ranked ten sites according to the amount and cost of producible energy, whether or not the sites were in federal or state waters, and the visibility of the projects from shore. Factors highlighted in the report would guide the selection of sites. Most importantly, the report projected that 15 percent of Rhode Island’s average energy demand at a competitive cost could be achieved by establishing a wind farm using areas identified as J and K in the study.

Last fall, an extensive stakeholder process was organized to evaluate the study. Participants in the four stakeholder meetings including city and town representatives, environmental organizations, local economic development organizations, commercial and recreational fishing interests, state government agencies, the U.S. Coast Guard, area university representatives, National Grid officials, and consultants to the RI Office of Energy Resources.

In April, the Carcieri administration sought bids from private companies to design, construct, finance and operate an off-shore wind farm designed to generate 1.3 million megawatt-hours per year of renewable energy – 15 percent of all the electricity used in the state. The evaluation team will review the seven proposals the state received, and will select the best project.

The Wind Energy Proposal Evaluation Team will review bids on the basis of total cost to Rhode Island ratepayers, the qualification and experience of the bidder in constructing wind projects, and the number of jobs and the amount of tax dollars to be created. The state plans to award a contract to the best bidder, who will then begin the process of seeking the necessary regulatory permits and conducting the necessary environmental and siting studies. The team is expected to complete its work by the end of this summer.

via the governor's office.