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T. Boone Pickens
When T. Boone Pickens states that he can’t afford something, I know I’m in DEEP trouble. And sadly, Mr. Pickens can’t afford to continue the pace of his clean renewable energy program.
Texas oil billionaire T. Boone Pickens, chairman of BP Capital Management, said he has delayed his plan to build the world's largest wind farm blaming financing problems and transmission line limitations.
'I didn't cancel it,' Pickens said after a press conference.”Financing is tough right now and so it's going to be delayed a year or two.'
'I expect to continue development of the Pampa project, but not at the pace that I originally expected.'
The Pampa Wind Project, (4,000 megawatts of electricity in the next 4-5 years) located in the Texas Panhandle, could power 1.2 million average homes by 2014 at a cost of $8 billion.
The spending on wind turbines would have supported economic activity and provided a clean source of renewable energy at a time when the nation must continue to exploit all forms of energy.
For the huge wind farm he had planned in Texas, Mr. Pickens/Mesa Power LLP had already ordered 687 large wind turbines from General Electric, to be delivered starting in 2011. But transmission lines being built by the state were unlikely to reach the location he has leased until 2013, so he needed to put the turbines elsewhere. Mr. Pickens had once planned to build his own transmission lines, but difficulty in finding financing amid the credit crisis forced him to shelve that plan.
Pickens said he did not think the postponed project is a setback for the wind industry because all sectors are having trouble finding financial backers in this economic climate.
'I am fully committed to wind energy and to developing wind projects in the U.S. and perhaps Canada,' he said.
Mesa Power's huge order of wind turbines in May 2008 came after other developers, such as Florida’s FPL Group, German-based E.ON, and others, were already operating more than 5,500 MW of emission-free wind power.
Installation was underway on another 3,000 MW of wind, an amount that strained the existing transmission network's ability to transfer power from windy west Texas to larger metropolis cities like Dallas, San Antonio and Houston.
The original plan to move electricity from the Texas Panhandle -- an area not connected to the state's primary grid serving major cities -- called for Pickens to build his own transmission line, a costly idea he soon dropped.
Late last year, Texas regulators finalized a $4.9 billion plan to construct new power lines to accommodate more than 18,000 MW of wind generation in the next few years, including nearly 2,400 MW of wind in the Panhandle zone that includes Pampa.
Mesa Power was also looking at an option of shipping power from the Pampa wind farm through Oklahoma and Kansas to northern and eastern markets through the grid overseen by the Southwest Power Pool.
SPP, which currently has about 3,000 MW of installed wind capacity, also has significant transmission bottlenecks, and is working to create a 'superhighway' to take advantage of the huge amount of wind resource in the nation's midsection.
Some of my favorite T. Boone Picken’s “Booneisms”:
“Be willing to make decisions. That's the most important quality in a good leader. Don't fall victim to what I call the “ready-aim-aim-aim-aim” syndrome. You must be willing to fire.”
“Far too many executives have become more concerned with the “four P’s” — pay, perks, power and prestige — rather than making profits for shareholders.”
“Keep things informal. Talking is the natural way to do business. Writing is great for keeping records and putting down details, but talk generates ideas. Great things come from our luncheon meetings, which consist of a sandwich, a cup of soup, and a good idea or two. No martinis.”
“I have always believed that it's important to show a new look periodically. Predictability can lead to failure.”
“Work eight hours and sleep eight hours, and make sure that they are not the same eight hours.”
“If you’re on the right side of the issue, just keep driving until you hear glass breaking. Don’t quit.”
“Work hard. Come early, stay late. That’s the way leadership has to approach it.”
“Fight your way out of corners. I play pretty good off the wall.”
Hang in there T. Boone ~ we're hoping you fight your way out of this corner.
Let me know if I can help: james@thejameshamilton.com
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Comments
Big Oil stikes again. Somehow you know the lobbyists had their voices heard and got another alternative energy project stopped.
Big Oil drys up, Texas drys up. That simple. We refuse to give up our Hummers.
These liberals are ruining the American Economic system. Focus on developing what we have...not a pipe-dream of what may work 100 years from now. Our Economy needs fuel based Energy from the "Big Oil" companies that are keeping Americans employed until Obama destroys us all.
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