Pickens Plan District Group IN-02

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Comment by mike on November 17, 2010 at 3:07pm

Indie Film “Haynesville” Will Premiere November 23rd On CNBC

“Haynesville” will premiere on Tuesday, November 23rd at 9pm on CNBC. The one hour documentary will repeat that evening at 10pm, 12am and 1am.

The show will also air on:

Sunday, November 28th at 10pm.

“Haynesville”

When the people in rural Northern Louisiana learn they are sitting on a fortune, they struggle to weigh their big dreams against the safety of their community. Some will take the money and run while others learn to negotiate with the big energy companies who are looking to drill into the trillion-dollar natural gas reservoir that lies deep beneath their homes. Will this be easy money or the fight of their lives, in what some are calling the “new gold rush”?

http://www.theindechannel.com/movies/indie-film-haynesville-will-pr...

Please watch and tell your friends!



film, natural gas, shale, indie, pickens plan, Haynesville, fracking, energy

Comment by Mike Mott on October 21, 2009 at 10:47pm

Boone to speak at Notre Dame: Hey gang, TBP is going to do a town hall @ ND on the 26th at 5 pm. Let's show him Indiana is on board in a big way & have a huge Army turnout! Message me at Mike.mott@pickensplan.com if you are going & if enough go, we'll try & put together something special!!

Comment by Jim Cawthon on May 14, 2009 at 7:06am

It looks like Indiana is starting to take the lead in many of the Picken Plans projects. Electric cars coming to Elkhart. Wind energy in west central INdiana and other places and new a CNG car being produced in southern Indiana.

Comment by Jim Cawthon on May 14, 2009 at 7:04am

Greensburg Plant Starts Producing Natural Gas-Powered Car

Inside INdiana Business.com Report

Honda Manufacturing of Indiana LLC (HMIN) is now producing a natural gas powered vehicle. The first Civic GX has rolled off the assembly line at the Greensburg facility. Honda says it the only natural gas-powered vehicle built by a major automaker in the U.S.

http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/newsitem.asp?id=35587

Comment by Jim Cawthon on May 4, 2009 at 8:24am

Here is a story my son did for the Ball State student magazine -- expo

Winds of change

More than corn is sprouting in Indiana this spring.

By David Cawthon

Because there was no mass-scale build of wind generators in Indiana before Benton County, wind businesses were skeptical about building a large-scale wind farm.

Harry Hoover, a retired teacher from Benton Central High School, found himself fascinated with the possibility of a wind farm near his hometown when he heard rumors at county board meetings. Hoover filmed and took numerous photographs that chronicled the construction of the wind farms.

“It’s always windy here,” Hoover says. “They [wind energy companies] didn’t take our word for it, though. We are a rural community but don’t let that fool you. We are a high-tech farm community. We have GPS in our tractors.”

He says geological survey towers were constructed in southern Benton County near Boswell, Ind., to determine if the county was a viable, wind-energy source.

“After they took the readings from the first tower, it said the wind was blowing all the time,” Hoover says. “They said, ‘No, no. It’s faulty.’ So they put up a second one, and it said the wind was blowing all the time.”

With positive readings, General Electric constructed 87, 1.5 megawatt generators to form the Benton County Wind Farm. They all were finished and running by May 2008, marking the beginning of harnessing clean wind energy in Indiana. The project created hundreds of new jobs and brought business to the tiny town of Earl Park.

Hoover says workers rented all the houses in Earl Park, and all motels in Fowler were full.

Workers also poured into the local bar and grill, Stan’s Pub, at the end of the workday after toiling in the fields with the generators. Hoover says truck stops around the county were filled with 15 to 20 semi trucks waiting to travel to their assigned work site, loaded with massive 126-foot propeller blades and segments of 262-foot generator columns.

“Sometimes there would be 17 to 18 trailers on the side of the road towing these massive generator parts,” Hoover says.

During their time in Benton County, construction workers poured money in to the local economy, but when the project was finished, many left. Hoover says some are still in Earl Park because of the new wind farm south of town.

After the success of the Benton County Wind Farm, two other wind generator companies elected to construct the Fowler Ridge Wind Farm near Fowler, Ind., the largest town in Benton County with 2,305 residents. The town has a modest downtown area, reminiscent of the 1930s, which houses a few quaint shops and businesses.

Dave Dorsey, owner of Gifts n’ Things in Fowler, says living near the wind farms is an interesting experience.

“It’s got us a lot of attention and brought tourists in to see them,” he says. “America is in a bad economic position right now, but because of the wind farms, Benton County is doing really good. It’s lowered our property taxes, it’s brought a lot of additional revenue in. I think it’s great.”



Dorsey says the workers have supported the retail stores, grocery stores and restaurants.

Across the street from Gifts ‘n Things at Benner’s Bar and Grill, Phil Benner serves drinks to people tired from the day’s work. “There’s a lot of people in town now,” Benner says. “They got to live somewhere, they got to eat somewhere, and they got to go out, so yeah, it’s helped everything.”

The wind farms haven’t only helped local shops and stores in Benton County but have also created new green collar jobs. Dr. James Eflin, the natural resources and environmental management chairman at Ball State University says America should cut off its addiction to old industries and embrace green jobs.

“Things that will bring about new jobs and new businesses as opposed to just perpetuating the old things is the way of the future,” Eflin says. “Green jobs … those are 21st century industries, not early 20th century industries. We can’t keep dragging the 1920s with us.”

The wind industry not only creates construction jobs for those who erect the generators, power lines and grids but manufacturing jobs as well. A major benefit is that these jobs can’t be outsourced because turbine columns and propellers are too massive to be manufactured elsewhere and shipped overseas to the U.S.

Each generator in Benton County stands about 262 feet tall and has three blades that span about 126 feet. When a blade points straight up to the sky, the tower totals 388 feet. Unlike the wind turbines 30 years ago, these modern, gentle giants barely produce any noise, and only make a ‘whoosh’ sound as each blade passes toward the ground.

Wind turbines were not always as large, quiet or bird-friendly like the ones in Benton County. Early wind turbines were more of a burden than a blessing.

Wind energy became popular in the early 1980s in California. The Altamont Pass, located one hour east of San Francisco, is a mountainous area that contains the world’s largest and oldest concentration of wind turbines. According to eoearth.org, the energy price increases of the 1970s spurned the need for alternative energy sources, so construction of the Altamont Pass Wind Farm began in 1981. The wind farm consists of about 4,800 wind turbines that spin quickly and low to the ground – a deadly combination for birds of prey that populate the area. As an indirect result, the Altamont Pass Wind Farm kills more birds than any other wind farm in the U.S. Consequently, Benton County’s wind generators are spaced further apart, are much larger and spin slowly so that birds can easily avoid the propellers.

Eflin says that cosmetically, modern wind farms are more attractive.

“I think that these elegant posts that they have now are really elegant,” Eflin says. “The ones in California just looked ugly. I’m not surprised that people didn’t welcome them with open arms.”

Unlike California, Indiana was not regarded as a state with wind potential, and it took a while for companies to embrace the idea of Indiana as a wind state.

“Six years ago, I would have told you that we didn’t have a future in wind,” Eflin says, “because most of the projections of the wind capacity at that time were based on studies that were completed around 1990. I used to tell my class we’re never going to have wind farms in Indiana.”

Eflin says a study done in the early 1990s by the Union of Concerned Scientists analyzed the Midwest for wind energy potential and concluded that Indiana, Illinois and Ohio didn’t have any wind potential. The old technologies used to construct the wind maps flawed their results. In 2008, new technologies have enabled the development of wind turbines in Illinois, Ohio and Indiana. Illinois generated 571 million kilowatt-hours of energy in 2007, according to the Energy Information Administration. If Ohio’s wind energy development keeps expanding, the state could benefit from $7.6 billion in revenue from wind by 2030. The first data for Indiana wind energy will be available around May, the one-year anniversary of the Benton County wind farm.

Because of Benton County’s success, wind fever is spreading throughout Indiana. Recent talks of constructing generators are underway in a number of Indiana counties including: Fountain, Grant, Hamilton, Howard, Madison, Montgomery, Porter, Randolph, Tippecanoe and White counties. At least 15 Indiana counties have wind speeds that match those in Benton County, making future wind development in Indiana a likely endeavor.

Wind energy development in Indiana is beginning to attract more wind companies to the state. Brevini USA, a wind turbine gearbox manufacturer, announced in October 2008 that it is relocating its company headquarters from Chicago to Delaware County, Ind., bringing 455 new skilled jobs to the area. During a public conference on March 25, 2008 at the Horizon Convention Center, the company said it would invest $62.5 million in the new operation.

“Wind is here, and it’s here to stay,” Eflin says. “Wind is commercial right now. Long after coal, oil and natural gas are gone, the wind is going to keep blowing.”

Comment by Jim Cawthon on May 4, 2009 at 8:22am

Indiana trying to get into the Wind Energy business

Press Release

CHICAGO (May 4, 2009) - Representatives from the Indiana Economic Development Corporation and the Indiana Office of Energy Development will join executives, local officials and educators this week in Chicago to recruit new, high-tech companies to Indiana and showcase the state's strengths in wind energy development and components manufacturing.

The trip is part of the state's business recruiting efforts at the world's largest wind conference and exhibition trade show, WINDPOWER 2009, a show that is expected to host more than 1,200 exhibitors and 15,000 national and international wind energy thought leaders.

"Indiana has risen quickly as a national leader in wind energy development and is a natural location for future investment from the growing industry. Our favorable business environment and educated workforce are just a couple highlights of the compelling story we'll share with energy professionals from across the globe." said Mitch Roob, Secretary of Commerce and chief executive officer of the IEDC.

In addition to showcasing the state's homegrown energy and economic competitiveness in a booth at the convention, the Indiana delegation will meet one-on-one with company executives to encourage them to locate high-tech jobs in the fields of renewable energy and components manufacturing in the Hoosier state.

"We've just started tapping into Indiana's wind resource," said Brandon Seitz, director of OED. "Indiana's location and manufacturing infrastructure also makes it perfect to help meet this industry's growing supply chain needs."

Representatives from Duke Energy and local economic development organizations will join IEDC and OED at the Windy City trade show. Renewable energy researchers from Purdue University will also attend the conference.

While in Chicago, IEDC representatives will join with International gear maker, Brevini, to celebrate the company's newly inked contracts to supply gear boxes to two major wind turbine manufacturers starting in 2010. Last fall, Brevini announced plans to locate its U.S. headquarters and first North American gear design and manufacturing center in Muncie, adding more than 450 new jobs over the next three years.

In April, the American Wind Energy Association announced Indiana's ranking as the fastest growing state for wind energy installations in 2008 and is projected to increase installations to over 800 megawatts by the end of the year. Also in April, Dominion (NYSE: D) and BP Wind Energy announced that Phase One of Fowler Ridge Wind Farm in Benton County is operational. The largest wind farm east of the Mississippi River, the operation is expected to generate enough carbon-free electricity to power more than 120,000 homes and provide 200 new jobs for Hoosiers.

About American Wind Energy Association
WINDPOWER is hosted by the American Wind Energy Association. AWEA is the national trade association of America's wind industry, with a membership that includes global leaders in wind power development, wind turbine manufacturing, and energy, as well as a broad range of component and service suppliers. More information on wind energy is available at the AWEA Web site: www.awea.org .

About IEDC
Created by Governor Mitch Daniels in 2005 to replace the former Department of Commerce, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation is governed by a 12-member board chaired by Governor Daniels. Indiana Secretary of Commerce Mitch Roob serves as the chief executive officer of the IEDC. For more information about the state's job creating agency, visit www.iedc.in.gov .

About OED
The Office of Energy Development (OED) was created in December 2005 as an extension of the Indiana Energy Office. Under the leadership of Lt. Governor Becky Skillman, OED is responsible for the state's energy policy. Don't miss Indiana's annual wind power conference WIndiana 2009, July 21-22 in Indianapolis. For more information visit www.energy.in.gov .

Source: Indiana Economic Development Corporation

Comment by Jessica Vanden Berg on April 15, 2009 at 4:18am

From the desk of T. Boone Pickens


Hey Army!
Congress is on its Spring break, but that doesn’t mean they’re out of touch. Most U.S. Senators and Representatives are back in their home states and districts willing to meet with and listen to their constituents.
That’s you!
When they left for their recess legislation had been introduced to promote natural gas; to promote energy efficiency; to promote a 21st century transmission grid; and to promote a national Renewable Energy Standard – in short to promote THE PICKENS PLAN.
In my business career I have seen too many people miss out because they thought that getting close was good enough. You and I know that when you are close, that’s the time to turn up the heat and push the ball over the goal line.
Click here to send your Member of Congress an e-mail - today. Drive over to one of their local offices and chat with a staffer. Click here to coordinate an event with fellow Pickens Plan supporters in your area by joining your District Group.
Let’s keep the pressure on and we’ll win for the Pickens Plan, but more important, we’ll win for America.


T. Boone Pickens

Comment by Frank Struck on March 25, 2009 at 9:25am

http://www.earthhourus.org/main.php



This Saturday, join the world and turn out your lights at 8:30 p.m….because, it’s the right thing to do.

Comment by Jim Cawthon on March 18, 2009 at 7:30am

Here is a link for some information on various types of alternate energy. For those of your discussing the Picken Plans with various groups it could be a good resource.

http://www.worldwatch.org/node/5265#RenewableEnergyWind


Welcome to all of our new members. If you begin geting a lot of Picken email, you an do some filtering to lower the number. Maybe this is just a problem with the disctrict leaders group and doesn't affect this group.

Comment by Jim Cawthon on March 14, 2009 at 2:16pm

Thanks Gordon

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