Northern Explorations Ltd. (Norex) is planning to enhance its portfolio of energy projects by entering into the wind energy sector. The company is currently reviewing these prospective acquisitions with an eye towards balancing wind energy and natural gas assets into a strategic plan designed to develop a convergent green energy organization. Norex has identified that the US wind corridor is a swath of the Great Plains that runs, two states wide, from northern Texas to the Canadian border.
Mark Schaftlein, recently appointed president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Norex, has identified significant opportunities in the wind energy sector through business contacts within the industry.
Norex believes wind power is an opportunity for new power generation that delivers practical near term economic development paybacks in conjunction with a program that delivers on the need for increased energy security and accountable long term environmental benefits. Fluctuating fossil fuel prices and unreliable supply policies from certain foreign sources increasingly raise the risk of future instability due to a reliance on conventional sources of power production. The company feels that programs, such as those advanced by energy industry veteran T Boone Pickens, clearly show the benefits of aligning the two pillars of wind and natural gas as a key element in future US domestic energy policies.
A Department of Energy study in 2007 said that building wind based electrical generation capacity in the corridor could provide up to 20 % of the US power needs and create a potential for 138,000 new jobs in the first year with up to 3.4 million jobs over a 10-year span as the industry matures.
Additionally, the American Wind Energy Association has reported that the leading markets in terms of new installed capacity in 2008 were the US and China. The US has now officially overtaken Germany (23,902 megawatt (MW)) as number one in wind power. Europe and North America are running neck-to-neck, with about 8,900 MW (8.9 GW) each of new installed capacity in 2008, with Asia closely following with 8,600 MW (8.6 GW). The massive growth in the US wind market in 2008 increased the nation’s total wind power generating capacity by 50%. The new wind projects completed in 2008 account for about 42% of the entire new power-producing capacity added in the US last year, and created 35,000 new jobs, for a current total of around 85,000 individuals employed in the sector across the nation.
With both House and Senate approval, the newly legislated American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 offers several specific provisions intended to keep the wind energy industry vibrant, healthy and growing through current economic conditions. The legislation includes a grant program to monetize tax incentives for renewable energy, a three-year extension of the production tax credit, provisions to promote transmission for renewable energy, and a removal of the cost cap on the small wind investment tax credit.
Company CEO Mark Schaftlein states, We have here an opportunity to develop a company that offers a significantly enhanced outlook by capitalizing on tangible prospects that can deliver a clear path to success. America must move rapidly toward environmentally responsible energy independence, this is an unassailable fact. To deliver on this promise we are positioning ourselves to acquire and develop commercially viable projects that fit this fundamentally sensible criterion. We strongly believe in a framework of programs such as those espoused by Pickens and see a great economic future in the marriage of energy assets such as natural gas and wind power. As we conclude our review process, we look forward to announcing further details of these proposed new projects in the coming days.