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Giant Wind Towers For Massive Wind Power

      With the wind energy tax credit about to expire at the end of this year….power companies are using favorable fall weather to install more towers across Iowa’s landscape.

      Cranes are working in an Eastern Iowa cornfield near Mechanicsville to build what will be the tallest wind generator in North America.                  

 Two towers….one concrete and the other steel…..and the generators are being built by Acciona (AX-SEE-OH-NA) which has a plant in West Branch, Iowa.

Acciona spokesman….Peter Gray says the concrete tower and one of the generators are being shipped from Spain, “ It’s a three megawatt turbine  which has a 100 meter concrete tower and a 116 meter rotor which means it’s got more blades to catch the wind to generate more electricity.”

      The Iowa Wind Energy Association’s executive director….Harold Prior…says this new era of higher towers…and bigger blades…catch a more consistent wind….increasing efficiency,“and with the bigger generator it will help our industry be more cost effective  in terms of the wholesale cost of generating electricity  because we won’t have to construct as many turbines on as many towers to reach the same number of megawatts on a given wind farm.” Prior says Iowans can expect to see more of the higher towers across the state.

Pat Blank is the host of All Things Considered