Dominion buys half of Shell wind farm in West Virginia

Dominion (NYSE: D), one of the largest energy producers in the U.S., is acquiring a 50 percent interest in a wind-turbine facility being developed by Shell WindEnergy in West Virginia.

Under terms of the agreement, Dominion will enter a joint venture agreement with Shell WindEnergy Inc. to develop the first phase of a wind facility near Dominion's Mt. Storm Power Station in Grant County that will produce 164 megawatts of electricity.

All regulatory and environmental permits required to begin construction are in place. Also completed is the transmission interconnection application and approval process with the PJM wholesale power market.

Tom Farrell, president and chief executive officer, said: "This is a great opportunity for Dominion to increase its renewable energy portfolio as the industry looks for ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Our venture into the wind-energy market is another step we are taking to improve the region's environment. Emission-free generation produced by these wind turbines is a good fit with our other renewable and traditional generation sources."

The project will consist of 82 wind turbines producing 2 megawatts each. The turbines will be constructed on the Allegheny Front, which has an average elevation of 3,100 feet at the project site. The region around Dominion's Mt. Storm Power Station has been identified as one of the best wind turbine locations on the East Coast.

Dominion is one of the nation's largest producers of energy, with a portfolio of about 28,000 megawatts of generation, about 6.6 trillion cubic feet equivalent of proved natural gas reserves and 7,800 miles of natural gas transmission pipeline. Dominion also operates one of the nation's largest underground natural gas storage systems with about 950 billion cubic feet of storage capacity and serves retail energy customers in 11 states.

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