Built by French power-generation company, Alstom, the Eco 100 is being tested at NWTC, part of the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), so it can be certified for use in the United States. Its certification will mean good-paying jobs in the United States for years to come, and what is learned during testing will bring the nation closer to DOE’s target of 20 percent wind energy by 2030.
Alstom paid for the project and will benefit from the information the tests provide, but NREL and America as a whole also will benefit, speakers at the April 26 Turbine Dedication ribbon-cutting said.
The cooperative research and development agreement signed last May between Alstom Power and NREL is being extended to include ongoing tests. Later, the two public-private partnership could be extended to include research on off-shore turbines.
The partnership will continue to produce results that “will strengthen our ability to harness the wind and power our future with clean, safe, and renewable energy,” said John Cohen, Alstom Power’s vice president for Government Affairs. He said the “what ifs” at the beginning of the partnership already are coming true. “What if a new technical process for turbine design accelerates expansion
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Why not a turbine from an American company for NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy)?