Iowa wind farms supported by
USDA Renewable Energy Program
SDA Rural
Development’s Section
9006 Renewable
Energy Systems loan
and grant program is
helping to finance wind power projects
throughout the nation, including two
new wind farms which recently began
operating in Iowa.
The Crosswind Energy wind farm
near Ruthven, Iowa, is composed of 10
two-megawatt (MW) turbines, each of
which is owned by an LLC that
represents partnerships between 10
Iowa producers and California-based
Edison Mission Energy. Edison’s
involvement will be phased out after 10
years of operating the turbines, which
are estimated to have a 25-year lifespan.
The 21 MW of power generated by
the wind farm is being sold to Cornbelt
Power Cooperative in Humboldt,
Iowa.
The project was made possible, in
part, by $250,000 in Section 9006
guaranteed loan funds, $302,125 in
USDA Value-Added Producer Grant
technical assistance funds, and $2.3
million in Section 9006 grants. During
the past four years, USDA Rural
Development has awarded $6.6 million
in guaranteed loans and grants to 37
large wind energy projects in Iowa.
The Hardin Hilltop Wind Farm,
northwest of Jefferson, Iowa, in Greene
County, is another example of how the
9006 program is being used to promote
wind power. USDA Rural Development
provided $1.7 million in grants to the
producers and individuals who
developed this seven-turbine wind farm.
Edison Mission Energy has also
invested in this wind project.
Interstate Power and Light Co.
(IPL), a subsidiary of Alliant Energy
Corporation, will purchase the 16 MW
of renewable energy generated by the
Hardin Hilltop project, which began
commercial operations in May.
Each of the investors owns a single
wind turbine, which can generate more
than two MW. IPL is eligible to receive
the Iowa small renewable tax credit.
Iowa college trains wind
technicians
Maintenance and monitoring work at
both wind farms will be done by
graduates of the wind energy program
at Iowa Lakes Community College.
The two-year, college-level program is
believed to the first of its kind in the
nation
The college recently held a ribbon
cutting to open a $1.7 million addition
to its Sustainable Energy Education
Center in Estherville, which houses the
Wind Energy and Turbine Technology
program. The program opened with 15
students three years ago but had grown
to 66 wind energy students by this fall.
“This one-of-a-kind program is
giving students the skills and knowledge
necessary to not only operate and
maintain wind turbines throughout the
state, but to keep Iowa on the forefront
of the renewable energy frontier,” Iowa
Governor Chet Culver said in a letter
read at the event in October.
PPM Energy provided a gift of
$100,000 to support the college’s wind
program. “With PPM’s aggressive
growth plans — and each new wind
farm needing skilled, safety-conscious
workers — strong training programs
are essential to meeting our future
staffing needs,” said Kevin Devlin, vice
president of PPM Energy.
How 9006 program works
“The Section 9006 program was
created in the 2002 Farm Bill for
financing both renewable energy and
energy efficiency projects,” Mark
Reisinger, USDA Rural Development
state director for Iowa, said while
speaking at the ribbon-cutting
ceremony for the Crosswinds project
last summer. He explained that a grant
can be made for up to 25 percent of
total eligible costs for a project, with a
maximum of $500,000 for a renewable
energy project and a maximum of
$250,000 for an energy efficiency
project.
A guaranteed loan under the 9006
program can be made for up to 50
percent of total eligible costs up to a
maximum of $10 million. A
combination grant and guaranteed loan
can be made for up to 50 percent of
total eligible costs.
“This program helps rural businesses
or agricultural producers develop
renewable energy or make energysaving
improvements to their facilities
or farms,” says Reisinger. Information,
applications, forms, and other tools
regarding the energy program can be
found at: www.rurdev.usda.gov.
