Energy progress blowin’ in the wind

Wind continues to grow, albeit slowly, as a source of state energy, according to a variety of reports from around the state:

• A couple southwestern Minnesota electric co-ops are making their first forays into wind power. Federated Rural Electric Association and Nobles Cooperative Electric are each receiving $2.5 million in bonds from a federal program to help rural utilities fund renewable energy projects. Federated will use its funds to erect a 2.1-megawatt wind turbine next to an ethanol plant east of Welcome, Minn. Nobles is also investing in a 2.1-megawatt turbine, which will be placed next to a soybean processing plant near Brewster, Minn.
• After a successful solar project, a Minneapolis neighborhood is shifting its focus to wind energy. The Minnesota Daily reports that the Southeast Como Improvement Association is promoting Xcel Energy’s Windsource program and hopes to get one-third of the neighborhood to sign up for the program.
• The Rochester School Board this week backed out of a plan to invest district dollars into a 10- to 20-megawatt wind farm. The Rochester Post-Bulletin reports that the board hoped to promote clean energy and raise money for the district, but questions about the project’s finances led the board to reconsider.

As of 2006, wind supplied about 3 percent of the state’s energy needs.