Wind Catcher Draws More Opposition As Bixby Council Outlines Concerns
Wind Catcher line draws opposition in Bixby as project gains corporate support
Project wins support from energy firms as Bixby residents express concern
By Kelly Bostian, Tulsa World
As they await a decision from the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, planners behind a wind power project that would be the largest in the country this week heard complaints from concerned residents but also gained statewide industry support.
Public Service Company of Oklahoma on Wednesday announced four other energy companies had signed on with settlement agreements to join Walmart and the Oklahoma Industrial Energy Consumers, which signaled their support in late April.
Wind Catcher is a $4.5 billion project that includes a 300,000-acre wind farm to be built in Cimarron and Texas counties with a 360-mile transmission line and two substations that will connect to the power grid at Tulsa. The wind farm would be the largest in the U.S. and the power line would be the largest west of the Mississippi. It would supply power to PSO customers in Oklahoma and Southwestern Electric Power Co. customers in Arkansas, Texas and Louisiana. PSO’s share of the project is $1.39 billion.
A decision on the project’s cost-recovery plan is pending before the Corporation Commission, which last held a hearing on the subject March 14.