Wind energy production nationwide increased by 1,649 megawatts during the third quarter, but you'd never know it by looking at wind installation in Iowa and Minnesota, the largest wind energy states in the Midwest. Both states recorded no gain in installed wind energy, although they have a total of seven wind projects under construction as the fourth quarter began.

Iowa regulators this month took up a proposal by MidAmerican Energy that would allow the utility to build 1,001 MW of wind generating capacity in the state through 2012, put the investment in rate base and recover the costs from ratepayers. In short, NextEra objects because MidAmerican is asking its regulators to okay its plan to have ratepayers pick up the tab for what otherwise would be a largely stockholder-backed venture.

Wind turbines will not be allowed in Clive for at least the next six months. The Clive City Council on Thursday approved an ordinance prohibiting the construction of wind energy systems from now until Feb. 1. The moratorium is intended to give city leaders time to work with other metro communities to create common standards for allowing wind turbines. The ordinance passed 4-0. Councilwoman Ronni Begleiter was absent.

The Sioux City man belongs to Operating Engineers Local 234, a union that represents heavy equipment operators in the state. The group thinks too many out-of-state workers are contracted to put up turbines at the Lost Lakes Wind Farm west of Milford. Horizon's office along Highway 71 in Milford has been the high-profile location for demonstrators. One placard said: "Shame on Horizon Wind Energy For Hiring Blattner Energy," referring to the Avon, Minn., firm selected to do construction work for Horizon at the wind farm site.

A MidAmerican Energy vice president said Monday that the utility would prefer to build its own wind turbine farms rather than buy renewable power from another source. ...Rival wind generator NextEra Energy of Florida, which has 800 megawatts of wind generation in Iowa, has objected to the MidAmerican proposal, saying it would be anticompetitive and that MidAmerican's real purpose is less to serve its customers than to sell excess electricity in the wholesale markets.

An executive of NextEra Energy said Wednesday the company would add up to 2,000 megawatts of wind-generated electricity in Iowa to the 800 megawatts it already generates. But NextEra Vice President Michael O'Sullivan said his company would need the same rate of return that MidAmerican Energy of Des Moines has requested from the Iowa Utilities Board for its proposed 1,001-megawatt project.

As a follow-up to last week's meeting with Maharishi University of Management officials, the Jefferson County Board of Supervisors discussed wind turbine installation and removal guidelines Monday. At this time, supervisor Steve Burgmeier said, "There are none." Supervisor Lee Dimmitt expressed interest in establishing guidelines.

The Council Bluffs City Council said “no” to wind energy – at least for now. The majority of the City Council Monday evening voted against an ordinance that would have allowed wind energy conversion systems, particularly those windmill-like structures that people see out in the countryside. It was the third reading of the ordinance, making it official.

In 2010, Alliant Energy expects to ask for another rate increase to pay the costs of building its Whispering Willow Wind Farm in north central Iowa. "Raising rates right now, with the way the economy is, is something you would not want to do if you had your druthers," said Tom Aller, president of Alliant's Interstate Power & Light subsidiary, to The Gazette's editorial board.

If you're a landowner and someone approaches you about placing a wind turbine on your property, are you getting the best deal possible? The best terms? And if the wind company should go belly up, who's going to pay to take down that 235-foot turbine? Those were some of the questions that attorney Scott Buchanan addressed at the second annual conference of the Iowa Wind Energy Association.

Acciona Windpower plans to cut employment by 58 at its West Branch facility in response to slackening demand for wind turbines. In a statement, Acciona said demand "is uncharacteristically low due primarily to instability in the financing markets." A total of 65 positions are being cut.

The presence of prairie winds and rich soil makes Iowa literally fertile ground for developing alternative energy sources from wind turbines and biofuels. But the landscape is also a reminder that achieving energy independence is a formidable challenge and making an agricultural economy green is not easy. ...Phil Wyse, a state representative for 22 years, believes Iowa and America need nuclear power. "We need sources of power that are constant and don't rely on things like whether the wind's blowing or the sun's shining," he says.

An Illinois company has expressed interest in building Dubuque County's first wind energy farm. EcoEnergy, LLC, a renewable energy company based in Freeport, Ill., has a plan to construct a wind measurement tower seven miles northeast of Dyersville, in hopes of developing a turbine farm and an operations and maintenance facility.

As many as 120 wind turbines could dot the Deep Creek, Center, Elk River township area by 2012 if plans outlined to the Northeast School Board this week come to fruition. Bill French, project coordinator for Midwest Wind Energy, LLC, Chicago, told the school board it is early in the process, but contacts have been made with land owners of about 75,000 acres.

A major layoff today at Clipper Windpower's Cedar Rapids turbine works sent about 150 stunned workers home. Employees were told that about half of the plant's 300 employees, who manufacture Clipper's wind turbines, would be released because of market conditions, including difficulty by wind developers in securing project financing.

The owners and builders of smaller, independent wind generators say it's time they get some breaks from the Iowa Legislature. Small nonutility wind producers want the same thing that MidAmerican Energy or Alliant Energy get when they set up a wind turbine farm: a guaranteed rate of return to help recover the costs of buying and installing the turbines and then connecting to the transmission grid.

The project is massive, says Tim Wichman, leasing manager for Kansas-based Trade Wind Energy (TWE), one of the country's largest developer and manager of wind energy. The actual number of wind generators depends upon the success in leasing property rights from area owners. The estimated cost of the project could reach $1 billion if all 335 wind generators are built.

Shortly after the majority of the Clipper turbines were erected it was discovered the blades had a manufacturer's defect. "Phase 2 has some minor repairs to the blades which is underway, but it will not affect energization," Ginn said. "Michael Bogie is our FPL representative that is managing the blade repairs for the Clipper turbines."

The political winds are right for making wind power in Iowa. The problem is getting that power to the big cities that can use it. ...Proposals to give FERC more say over power transmission lines have foundered in Congress before, and the commission itself isn't united behind Kelliher's idea. Under current law, the commission can promote investment in new transmission lines for wind farms by awarding developers a higher rate of return. That allows utilities to charge more for the power. But it's still up to the states to decide whether to allow the lines to be built.

A Newton manufacturing plant has put on hold plans to add 300 jobs and expand its operations there due to the struggling U.S. economy. TPI Composites, which manufactures wind turbine blades, halted plans to add the jobs and add 100,000 square feet to the $56 million, 316,000-square-foot manufacturing plant that opened in September.