December 17, 2001
Kansas Governor joins Utilicorp United, FPL Energy officials to
dedicate largest wind farm in Kansas
MONTEZUMA, KS, December 17, 2001 - Kansas Governor Bill Graves
today joined UtiliCorp United and FPL Energy officials on the southwest
Kansas plains to dedicate the largest wind farm ever constructed
in the state. The FPL Energy Gray County Wind Farm near Montezuma
is owned and operated by FPL Energy and supplies electricity to
UtiliCorp's customers in Kansas and Missouri.
Governor Graves, Keith Stamm, president and chief operating officer
of UtiliCorp's Global Networks Group, and Michael O'Sullivan, senior
vice president, development of FPL Energy, led the dedication ceremonies
held near one of the last turbines completed at the facility. Construction
of the 170 turbines at the wind farm, each about 295 feet high to
the tip of the rotor, began in June and was completed ahead of schedule
in late November.
"There are obvious long-term advantages to investing in renewable
energy technologies," Governor Graves said. "Wind energy
offers exciting opportunities for Kansas and I am thrilled that
this facility is up and running."
"This wind farm demonstrates UtiliCorp's commitment to providing
its customers with renewable and reliable energy supplies, as well
as FPL Energy's technical excellence in constructing and activating
this facility," said Keith Stamm. "We are especially pleased
that Governor Graves is here to represent the strong interest he
and the State of Kansas have in growing wind power supplies in the
state.
"While this is the first major wind power project in Kansas,
the state has the potential to be a U.S. leader in wind energy."
"The FPL Energy Gray County Wind Farm is a prime example of
a great project put together by a terrific team. It was completed
in what may be record time," said Bob Bergstrom, development
manager, FPL Energy. "We are delighted to dedicate it to the
present and to the future-because we think wind generated energy
will play a key role in the future of energy generation.
O'Sullivan, FPL's senior vice president of development, noted that
the U.S. is behind other nations in its pursuit of wind energy,
with globally installed capacity of 17,000 megawatts. "But,"
he said, "we are catching up. Projects proposed for completion
by the end of this year represent 2,000 additional megawatts of
capacity. Our projects, including this one here in Gray County,
accounted for 40 percent of the total. This is a path we intend
to follow because wind energy is clean, conserves fossil fuels,
reduces overall air emissions, and harnesses a never-ending resource."
Joining Governor Graves, UtiliCorp and FPL Energy representatives
were other state and local officials who toured the wind farm. The
facility is capable of generating 110 megawatts of electricity,
enough to power 33,000 homes. UtiliCorp purchases all the power
produced at the wind farm.
The electricity from the Gray County Wind Farm serves UtiliCorp's
WestPlains Energy customers in Kansas as well as its Missouri Public
Service and St. Joseph Light & Power customers in Missouri.
UtiliCorp was the first utility to provide wind-generated power
to residential customers in Missouri and Kansas. It serves 265,000
customers in Missouri, 65,000 in Kansas and 80,000 customers in
Colorado. It also provides natural gas service to 863,000 customers
in Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota and Michigan.
UtiliCorp has received an award from the governor of Missouri for
its efforts in the development of wind power for its residential
customers in the state. In addition, UtiliCorp received an honorable
mention in the Kansas Pollution Prevention awards for the company's
wind power initiative.
FPL Energy is the nation's leader in wind energy generation, with
24 wind farms in Iowa, Texas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Washington,
Oregon, and California. This wind portfolio represents more than
1,800 megawatts of capacity and a net ownership of more than 1,400
megawatts. The company has plans for wind projects that will add
a significant number of megawatts to its capacity by the end of
2005.
FPL Energy is a leading independent producer of clean energy from
natural gas, wind, solar and hydroelectric. The company's portfolio
includes 73 facilities in operation, under construction, or in advanced
stages of development in 17 states. New projects will bring total
capacity to 10,000 megawatts by the end of 2003. Wind power represents
nearly 15 percent of the company's portfolio, with a total of 80
percent being fueled by renewable sources or clean-burning natural
gas.
FPL Energy is a subsidiary of FPL Group, one of the nation's largest
providers of electricity-related services. FPL Group's principal
subsidiary is Florida Power & Light Company, one of the nation's
largest electric utilities, serving approximately 3.9 million customer
accounts in Florida. FPL Group has annual revenues of more than
$7 billion. Additional information is available on the Internet
at www.fplenergy.com,
www.fplgroup.com
and ww.fpl.com.
Based in Kansas City, UtiliCorp United is an international energy
company with customers and operations across the U.S. and in Canada,
the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Australia. At September 30,
2001, UtiliCorp had total assets of $11.9 billion and 12-month sales
of $42.3 billion. Additional information is available at
www.utilicorp.com.
Media Contacts:
UtiliCorp United: George Minter - (816) 467-3772
FPL Energy: Mary Wells -- (610) 659-9108
Governor's Office: Don Brown -(785) 291-3206
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