(Host) The state’s largest electric utility has agreed to buy the electricity produced by a southern Vermont wind energy project.
Late last year, Central Vermont Public Service Corporation sold Catamount Energy, the developer of the wind farm on Glebe Mountain in Windham County.
But CVPS has now agreed to buy all the power produced from the Catamount wind turbines.
Steve Costello is a CVPS spokesman. He says the project has both economic and environmental benefits.
(Costello) “The energy from the project is expected to displace 16,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide from fossil fuel generation in New England each year, which is the equivalent of burning over 300 rail coals of coal or nearly 150,000 barrels of oil each year. So that’s a tremendous air impact. It also, because of the way the deal is structured, is expected to reduce our power costs by up to $700,000 per year on a going forward basis.”
(Host) Under its deal with Catamount, CVPS will pay 95% of the market price for the electricity. Since the company has a surplus of power, it will sell other energy sources into the market in order to reduce overall power costs.