Last big hurdle passed for Cape Wind

[unhappycamper]

Last big hurdle passed for Cape Wind
By Beth Daley
Globe Staff / November 23, 2010

The state Department of Public Utilities gave permission yesterday for National Grid to purchase half of Cape Wind’s power, removing the last significant hurdle for construction to begin on the controversial wind farm in Nantucket Sound next year.

The agency, however, refused to approve a second agreement for the sale of the project’s remaining power. Without a buyer for that energy, Cape Wind could have trouble arranging financing for the proposed 130-turbine project, energy specialists said, with some suggesting only half of the turbines may now be built.

“The power from this contract is expensive in light of today’s energy prices,’’ the 374-page DPU decision says. “It may also be expensive in light of forecasted energy prices, although less so than its critics suggest. . . . However, it is abundantly clear that the Cape Wind facility offers significant benefits that are not currently available from any other renewable resource.’’

Among those benefits, the administration has long said, are cleaner air, reduced reliance on fossil fuels, energy security, and a more diverse mix of power sources.

While Cape Wind is expected to cost National Grid residential customers less than $2 a month, because it will account for a small percentage of the utility’s power supply, the cost of Cape Wind’s electricity will be double the current cost of power generated from fossil fuels. That higher price erupted into a major controversy in recent months, including during the gubernatorial race, amid a struggling economy and in a state with some of the nation’s highest electricity costs. The Cape Wind project is expected to cost more than $2 billion.



unhappycamper comment: I intensely dislike NSTAR but I can cough up two bucks a month to make this happen.