Developing a commercial windfarm is a long, complex, and expensive undertaking. It is our goal to make the development process as painless to the landowner as possible. If a landowner prefers, Windland will even consider purchasing the land. Windland has been actively involved in the wind industry for over 25 years and has the experience to guide a wind project to success. We specialize in all aspects of development, including:
Resource Identification and evaluation
A wind power plant is not feasible without a windy site. Windland conducts sophisticated studies using the latest technologies including advanced anemometry and sodar devises. Windland is able to answer the question, “How much wind is enough?”
Wind Rights Leasing
Over the years, Windland has negotiated long-term leases in its relationships with landowners. Windland is in a unique position to accommodate landowners’ concerns regarding the design, construction, and operation of a windfarm.
Siting and Land Use
A list of hurdles for a wind power plant is long. Environmental concerns, sound ordinances, and transmission constraints are only a few of the barriers a wind developer must overcome. Windland has the experience and expertise to locate its projects for success.
Permitting
Careful consideration must be given to the permitting process. Many developers overlook the importance of getting the community behind a project. Windland has conducted many open forums to solicit community feedback in order to make its projects successful.
Project Design and Turbine Selection
Careful attention must be paid to long term weather patterns, turbine selection and environmental and topographic constraints when designing to final layout of a project. Incorrectly siting a turbine by just a few feet can easily affect the output of the turbine by 1-2 percent. This is why Windland uses sophisticated design programs and experienced consultants to design its projects for success.
Transmission Design and Interconnection
A comprehensive understanding of local and regional transmission patterns, utility regulations, and power planning is crucial to siting a project. Windland’s long history and experience in the industry offer its projects the ability to move forward on the leading edge of technology.
Power Purchase Agreements
Power Purchase Agreements are necessarily very long and detailed. Understanding the intricacies of the agreement is crucial to the success of a project. Windland brings the experience of applying to, and being selected by, various utilities for its projects.
Financing
The current environment makes financing very difficult for many developers. Wind energy financing many times involves complicated debt structures and requires an understanding of government grants and guarantees. Windland is fortunate to have a strong financial statement to accompany its years of experience in the wind industry.
Safety
Windland believes that safety starts at the outset of a project before construction has even begun. Windland’s lease agreements, insurance policies, and purchase agreements all incorporate strict standards for safety. In our view, the scope of safety extends far beyond the scope of the project to individuals, families, our company, and the industry as a whole.
Construction
Windland’s construction experience began in building the “Wind Walls” of the early 1980’s, in which turbines were sited very close together to maximize the capture of the wind. Throughout the years, turbines have become much larger and more efficient and spacing is very precise. Therefore, construction requires more attention to details than ever. Windland is pleased to work with only the most experienced and qualified construction contractors.
Environmental Stewardship
Protecting the environment is one of the cornerstones of our company. With increasing concerns of global warming and pollution, we see our industry as part of the answer to a global need for clean energy. We take a comprehensive stance on environmental stewardship by conducting extensive wildlife tests for our projects. Windland recently received approval from the BLM to construct up to a 200 MW windfarm on the Cotterel Mountains in southern Idaho. This is the first approval from BLM for a large-scale commercial wind energy project on public lands in the US.