^{Wind Power Turbines – The Environmental Blog}

In the burgeoning field of renewable energy, big state players in the United States are pitching for each others business. The great state of Wyoming is saying “Hey California, we have some wind energy for sale.”

California may give it a close look because last year California committed to obtaining one third of their electricity from renewable sources by the year 2020! It’s the most ambition renewable energy policy plan set forth by any city or state. As of now, the plan is for them to produce this power in state, but if time is running out and California isn’t able to meet their targets then perhaps they’ll consider the pitch from Wyoming.

Wyoming officials are calling attention to the study by the Western Electricity Coordinating Council. The report suggests that Wyoming could produce renewable energy in their remote regions and transmit it to California at a much cheaper cost than California could produce on its own.

Some long-distance transmission to access remote renewable resources appears to be costeffective when compared to some of the local renewable generation assumed in the Plan’s Expected Future

California’s electricity already costs about twice as much as in Wyoming, a state that ranks among what is now a minority without a renewable energy portfolio standard. Not to suggest that the act of having a renewable energy portfolio standard drives electricity costs upwards…but the higher upfront costs associated with starting on renewable energy isn’t as cheap as burning coal. In fact, shutting down coal plants are the “in” thing to do as exampled by Oregon shutting down its only coal plant early.

Yet to be built high-voltage, direct-current power lines are laid out as possible projects by 2020 in the WECC study which start in Wyoming and criss cross Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and California.

Nearly all of Wyoming’s renewable electricity generation is wind power. Although solar power is becoming more affordable, wind power remains much less expensive. Perhaps Oregon and other nearby states to California will make pitches of their own in California’s electricity rates start to increase by too much year over year in the coming decade.