Nov. 29, 2011 – Power Company of Wyoming LLC’s Chokecherry and Sierra Madre Wind Energy Project has been named by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to its list of 2012 Renewable Energy Priority Projects.

PCW’s proposed wind power plant is one of only six wind projects identified nationwide to receive priority status and one of three wind projects in Wyoming. The Chokecherry and Sierra Madre Wind Energy Project will turn the nation’s best onshore wind resources – Class 5, 6 and 7 – into 2,000-3,000 megawatts of high-capacity, cost-effective electricity, enough to power approximately 800,000 homes.

According to BLM, the priority permitting list was developed in collaboration with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and other federal agencies. Projects were selected "based on a variety of criteria, including progress of the necessary public participation and environmental analysis under NEPA and applicable state environmental laws."

Following more than three years of analysis and public input, in July 2011 BLM released its Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the PCW wind project, which it called "the largest commercial wind generation facility proposed in North America." The project is located on an approximately 50/50 combination of private land interspersed with federal land managed by BLM. A Final Environmental Impact Statement is anticipated in 2012.

"Our project development is backed by solid fundamentals including outstanding wind resources, a wealth of environmental data, and direct access to major transmission and transportation corridors," said Bill Miller, PCW president and CEO. "The BLM priority status should move PCW another step closer to beginning construction and generating the cost-effective renewable energy supplies that California and other states need."

In addition, the project will advance federal renewable energy goals, provide hundreds of millions of dollars in state and local tax revenue, and create and sustain thousands of construction, manufacturing, services and operations jobs. PCW also is implementing a comprehensive science-based conservation plan designed to minimize the wind project’s impacts on wildlife and designed to provide a net conservation benefit to species such as the greater sage-grouse.

For more information about BLM’s renewable energy efforts and the 2012 priority projects, visit http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/energy/renewable_energy.html.

For more information about PCW and its Chokecherry and Sierra Madre Wind Energy Project, visit www.powercompanyofwyoming.com.

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