Entire State Of Oklahoma Auditioning For Wind Power Play

Not the musical by Rodgers and Hammerstein: "Oklahoma, where the wind comes sweepin' down the plain."

This one will be a reality play.

"Major energy players in government and business are trying to chart a billion-dollar wind frontier with Oklahoma in the middle."

"They say the biggest hurdle to harnessing the region's renewable, clean and lucrative gusts is the transmission of the energy. Electricity transmission lines in rural areas, such as the Oklahoma Panhandle, are too small to satisfy the needs of populatio centers like Oklahoma City and Dallas. The plan is a logistical and financial unknown. States, their utilities and industry seek a way to spur economic development and harvest a valuable resource. The prospect is attracting outsiders who want to own the expanded transmission system, which is necessary to sell clean energy to the wind-starved east...Oklahoma wind farms can produce a maximum 689 megawatts, ranking fifth in the United States, said Oklahoma State University climatology professor Steven Stadler."

We're not certain if the cited maximum wind power potential for Oklahoma was correctly quoted, by the way. Perhaps someone can provide us an update or citation?

Via:: NewsOK.com, "Energy plan turns nature into money" Image credit:: Amazon, Oklahoma! (1955 Film Soundtrack)