Working in collaboration with the Department of Energy Resources, the Division of Capital Asset Management (DCAM) has issued requests for proposals (RFPs) to install two 1.65 MW turbines at the North Central Correctional Institution in Gardner, Mass., and one or two turbines of the same size at Mt. Wachusett Community College, also located in Gardner, depending on available funding.
The RFPs follow feasibility testing that demonstrated wind power potential at both sites capable of supporting large wind turbine installations.
‘Not only will the turbine provide substantial financial rewards in terms of future cost savings, but it will also provide educational rewards as Mt. Wachusett Community College expands its program offerings in renewable energy education, a high-demand and rapidly expanding field,’ says Department of Higher Education Commissioner Richard M. Freeland.
The Department of Correction turbines will be funded, in part, through a $1.2 million grant from the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust, while the Mt. Wachusett Community College project is partially financed with Department of Energy funds.
The deadline for bids on the two Gardner wind turbine projects is Oct. 9. DCAM will likely select contractors in late November, and work will begin this winter.
For more information: mass.gov; search for project DOC0702 EC1 or MWC0801 ES1.
SOURCE: Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs
