T. Boone Pickens Gets Into The Texas Wind: 4,000 Mega-Watts Worth
by John Laumer, Philadelphia on 06.18.07
"Dallas oilman and investor Boone Pickens wants to build the world's largest wind farm in the Texas Panhandle, a project that would put as many as 2,000 turbines on nearly 200,000 acres in four counties. Pickens' Mesa Power presented its plans to about 250 landowners and their representatives Tuesday in Pampa, about 50 miles northeast of Amarillo [Texas, USA]." A project spokesman indicated they were looking at generation capacity in the 2,000 to 4,000 MW range, costing as much as $6 billion. Most important, the project will include "transmission lines to carry the power to the state's main power grid...Mesa is offering landowners $4,500 per turbine upfront and payments for the electricity produced, starting at 4 percent and rising to 5 percent after eight years,...According to the State Energy Conservation Office, Texas has more than 30 wind farms operating or under construction. FPL Energy's 735.5-megawatt Horse Hollow project 20 miles southwest of Abilene is the world's largest." Via::Red Orbit Image credit:: Road To Pampa, Texas Scapes
Hee hee! Let's see Dick Cheyny call T. Boone Pickens some kinda granola hippie. That being said, 5% seems an awful small cut. The land is the biggest input.
This is some great stuff .. there is so much nothing out there that it asking for large scale wind and solar .. why do have "great plains" anyway .. let's turbine them up!
Gotta love those texans - they know about $ and power! LOL!
T Boone Pickens recently participated in the infamous Playboy Interview, and as an oilman, presented some startling conclusions about the environment, the role oil plays in our economy, and why he isn't interested in hybrid cars.
I have to say, although I didn't agree with everything he said, I WAS impressed with his dollars and sense on environmentalism and capitalism.
What we need, now more than ever, are people with large capital who are willing to invest in the infrastructure; customers will be found after the supply is established.
Crops can be grown beneath the turbines, and they really aren't as loud as one might think. It's more of a gentle "whooshing" sound...like a child twirling a large branch around in the yard. It's peaceful, striking, and beautiful...harness nature without the pollution!
Most electric utilities now have "green power" options that YOU can sign up for! Choose the 100% renewable option if you can, otherwise 50% is almost as good. Utilities need to understand there IS demand for renewable energy! The power is in your hands! If you don't buy from the utility, you can produce it yourself!
And paying landowners for the space of the turbine is a good deal...just like how people who have cellular and other communications towers on their land charge rental fees. Money talks, especially to farmers in drought areas!
This man is so extremely Environmentally suave eh? Perhaps you should talk to some of the farmers in Pampa before we start slapping Ol' Boone on the back.
Ask how many read the lower-fine print and noticed that the leasing contracts obliges Boone to the "mineral-rights" below the turbines as well....
Ask some farmers through Southwest Kansas, Ok Panhandle, and the Texas panhandle about Boone's 140,000 acre plot and his plan (still held up in courts) - to begin pumping (stealing if I might be so aggressive) the water out of that region's ONLY water source (the Ogallala aquifer) and shipping it to the Dallas area for a nice profit?
See how many families whom have held and farmed those lands for the last century are excited about this exploitation of a public water-source...
Lastly, see how many farmers are actually going to continue to lease out their land after they realize that they can't take upstate executives pheasant hunting out on their property anymore once a turbine is established.
Before you read his great sound-bites - actually do some research on this man. Go see if they even allow him in Japan anymore. Ask him his thoughts on the Japanese kieretsu.
Let GE, OG&E, or other local energy companies take the initiative on this front - but tell Boone to just stick to over-funding losing football teams in Ok... and stay the heck away from our water.
This man is so extremely Environmentally suave eh? Perhaps you should talk to some of the farmers in Pampa before we start slapping Ol' Boone on the back.
Ask how many read the lower-fine print and noticed that the leasing contracts obliges Boone to the "mineral-rights" below the turbines as well....
Ask some farmers through Southwest Kansas, Ok Panhandle, and the Texas panhandle about Boone's 140,000 acre plot and his plan (still held up in courts) - to begin pumping (stealing if I might be so aggressive) the water out of that region's ONLY water source (the Ogallala aquifer) and shipping it to the Dallas area for a nice profit?
See how many families whom have held and farmed those lands for the last century are excited about this exploitation of a public water-source...
Lastly, see how many farmers are actually going to continue to lease out their land after they realize that they can't take upstate executives pheasant hunting out on their property anymore once a turbine is established.
Before you read his great sound-bites - actually do some research on this man. Go see if they even allow him in Japan anymore. Ask him his thoughts on the Japanese kieretsu.
Let GE, OG&E, or other local energy companies take the initiative on this front - but tell Boone to just stick to over-funding losing football teams in Ok... and stay the heck away from our water.
try my site www.vawtech.co.uk
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if you want further info contact me on
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the in roof model is of interest to new home builders
for installation at point of build
but it can be retro fitted
T. Boone has the right idea about wind-powered generators and what they can do to relieve the high and going higher cost of electricity. I just wish I knew how to contact his organization to make them aware that distributed generation and the use of individual small wind-powered generators can truly be helpful to the agribusiness and small industries of West Texas. We make and sell 30 and 50 kW generators for a fraction of what the multi-megawatt generators cost and they can be installed for nearly nothing. Anyone interested in this issue can contact me at dws.windeagle@wf.net.
T. Boone has the right idea about wind-powered generators and what they can do to relieve the high and going higher cost of electricity. I just wish I knew how to contact his organization to make them aware that distributed generation and the use of individual small wind-powered generators can truly be helpful to the agribusiness and small industries of West Texas. We make and sell 30 and 50 kW generators for a fraction of what the multi-megawatt generators cost and they can be installed for nearly nothing. Anyone interested in this issue can contact me at dws.windeagle@wf.net.
The selling of water rights is OPTIONAL. Some may want to sell theirs others won't.
The POINT is Pickens KNOWS that the oil play is running dry and that wind is the future.
It is a CLEAN energy source that produces NO POLUTION. Harvesting the wind makes sense.
Other than hydro or solar their aren't many other sources of energy that produce NO polution.
I say GO FOR IT T. Boone make it a reality.
T. Boone Pickens Plan copied from Democrat Presidential candidate Frank Lynch!
In July 2008 Texas oil and gas man T. Boone Pickens posted on the internet as though he had thought of it himself, the giant wind power farm the Democratic Presidential candidate Frank Lynch had posted on the web a full year earlier!
Frank’s campaign was based on his Top Ten List to lift America a hundred years into the future in only eight years. Frank Lynch’s plan for a wind farm from Canda to Texas was posted at http://www.franklynch.org/greencities_part2.htm on July 20, 2007.
It is amazing how an obscure futurist buried away down in the hanging chad state of Florida has had such a giant effect on changing America in only one year.
Frank’s innovations have included a national Contest for better batteries for plug in electric cars (which was adopted within a year by John McCain’s Presidential campaign), Free College, Universal Healthcare, and the concept of meeting with all Middle East leaders including our enemies.
All of these innovations from Frank Lynch have both been copied by Senator Obama, even though Obama has watered them down to avoid alienating his corrupt donors in insurance and the teachers’ unions.
Great follow up this week in The Economist. I love the part where he basically says he's too old and too rich to be doing this for profit. Ha!
The wind farm is 5% of his plan. He knows wind will never be viable for our energy needs. The 20% he is talking about is the estimated 20% growth which means it will do zero for our dependencies of oil.
What Mr. Pickens is after is the leases on the transmission lines and the power of eminent domain. By controlling those he will control ALL future energy in the mid-West. Anyone who has a viable energy alternative will have to cut him in and sub-lease the transmission lines.
Beware of this deal!!!