Wind on the Wires Applauds Governors’ Plan for Transmission Lines and Clean Energy Wind on the Wires, a collaboration of the Midwest’s leading wind energy developers, clean energy advocates, tribal representatives and others, cheered the announcement today of the formation of Upper Midwest Transmission Development Initiative. The five state governors of Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin today agreed to work together to develop a regional transmission system to harvest the Midwest’s rich renewable energy resources. “Transmission capacity is the glass ceiling for renewable energy development in the Midwest,” said Wind on the Wires Director Beth Soholt. “To have these governors and the state electricity regulators proactively and cooperatively engaged with stakeholders in addressing the major barrier to unlocking the renewable energy resources of this region could be groundbreaking.” The five states joining the Upper Midwest Transmission Development Initiative are Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin. The five states will collaborate with the Midwest Independent Transmission System Operation, state regulatory agencies, utilities and others. The initiative will identify the region’s wind energy resources and the transmission infrastructure needed to develop those resources in the most cost-effective manner. Additionally, the Governors will seek resolution to a number of current barriers to additional transmission investment, such as how costs of new infrastructure should be allocated. Joe DeVito, Vice President of Development for RES Americas noted similarities to the successful Competitive Renewable Energy Zone process on-going in the state of Texas. “Our company, RES Americas, operates heavily in Texas, the national leader in production of wind energy. The state recently made a commitment to the future, approving 2,400 miles of new transmission lines at the projected cost of $4.9 billion. This move ensures aggressive renewable energy development in the state and dependable electricity for generations to come.” Clean-energy advocates laud the governors, saying the initiative could make a huge difference in addressing global climate change and allow the Midwest to be a national leader. “Bold actions to promote energy efficiency and wind energy development are absolutely critical to any cost-effective strategy to address global warming and energy security,” said Fresh Energy Executive Director and Wind on the Wires Board member Michael Noble. “We simply cannot add enough wind energy to the system to have an impact on these global problem without an aggressive build-out of transmission in the region. This initiative by the Governors gives hope that the Midwest will continue to do its part.” National wind energy experts point out that the benefits of developing the region’s rich wind energy resources go well beyond environmental gains. Hans Detweiler, Manager of State Legislation and Policy for the American Wind Energy Association said “The Upper Midwest stands to gain enormous economic development benefits from wind energy based on the resource that is available here—but it simply will not happen if transmission barriers are not attacked head-on. This action by the governors in this region is a vital step forward.” In a similar vein, Dan Yarano, Chair of Fredrikson & Byron's Renewable Energy Group, noted that “A collaborative approach is crucial to reducing the time to construct needed transmission and bring the Midwest's strong wind resource to consumers. Having a coordinated plan will create a more cost-effective infrastructure that will ultimately provide better value to consumers." The members of Wind on the Wires are gathering in Minneapolis today and tomorrow for the group’s annual strategic planning meeting. For comments, quotes or to set up an interview, please contact Mike Bull, Regional Policy Manager for Wind on the Wires, at 651-788-5100. | 
