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California grid agency approves wind energy project |
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| USA: August 3, 2004 | ||
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SAN FRANCISCO - The California Independent System Operator, which manages the state's power grid, approved a project to expand development of wind energy in Southern California.
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The agency endorsed a high-voltage power line to carry electricity from wind turbine generators in the Tehachapi and Antelope Valley areas north of Los Angeles to electricity customers throughout the state. Utility Southern California Edison, a unit of Edison International (EIX.N: Quote, Profile, Research) , plans to apply to utility regulators for final permission to build a 25-mile line estimated to cost about $94 million, the ISO said. The line could be in service by the end of 2007. The Tehachapi area has more than 600 megawatts of wind generation and 1,100 megawatts of new wind projects are planned. One megawatt is power for about 1,000 homes. "We've already seen a significant expansion in wind generation in California, and it's just the tip of the iceberg," said Marcie Edwards, interim chief executive officer of the ISO. The California Public Utilities Commission has directed Southern California Edison, working with the ISO, utilities and wind companies, to develop a plan to upgrade transmission capacity in the region. The CPUC believes the area could eventually produce as much as 4,000 megawatts of wind power. The state's investor-owned utilities are required to make renewable energy 20 percent of their electricity resources by 2017.
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REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
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