North Dakota regulators are planning for two large new wind energy projects, costing an estimated $2.3 billion, that should be capable of generating up to 1,150 megawatts of electricity. The state Public Service Commission on Wednesday formally accepted letters of intent from FPL Energy LLC, of Juno Beach, Fla., to build a 1,000-megawatt wind farm in west central North Dakota and a 150-megawatt project in Dickey County, in the southeastern part of the state.

North Dakota regulators are planning for two large new wind energy projects, costing an estimated $2.3 billion, that should be capable of generating up to 1,150 megawatts of electricity.

The state Public Service Commission on Wednesday formally accepted letters of intent from FPL Energy LLC, of Juno Beach, Fla., to build a 1,000-megawatt wind farm in west central North Dakota and a 150-megawatt project in Dickey County, in the southeastern part of the state.

The larger project, to include 667 wind towers sprinkled across 250 square miles in Oliver and Morton counties, will be one of the biggest wind farms in the United States, Commissioner Tony Clark said.

"I would put it on a worldwide scale. It will be one of the largest wind farms on the face of the Earth," Clark said.

The commission on Wednesday agreed to shorten a one-year waiting period for the construction application for the Dickey County project, which FPL Energy said it hopes to file by Oct. 1.

The company does not intend to formally apply to build the larger wind farm until July 1, 2009, said Scott Scovill, a company project director. Each application will carry a $100,000 filing fee.

FPL Energy estimates the Oliver-Morton wind project will cost up to $2 billion. Construction is planned to begin in May 2010 and be completed by December 2012.

Building the Dickey County wind farm will cost about $300 million, the company says. It hopes to finish construction by December 2009.

Public Service Commissioner Kevin Cramer said the Oliver-Morton wind farm will test North Dakotans' tolerance for large wind projects. It represents roughly three times more wind-power electric generation capacity than North Dakota now has.

"It's one thing to champion and to cheerlead for large investment," Cramer said. "There is no way that 667 turbines won't have some impact, and certainly there is some favorable economic impact, but this will be an intrusion on the landscape."

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