U.S. Vice President Biden Visits ABB Plant, Praises Wind Project As Fruit Of Stimulus Plan
United States Vice President Joe Biden visited the ABB distribution transformer factory in Jefferson City, Missouri on April 16 to recognize the plant’s contribution to a new wind farm that will be built this year in Missouri.
In a ceremony promoting results of the recent stimulus package, Biden pointed to this new 150-MW wind project as a prime example of how funds from the U.S. federal stimulus package are creating green jobs while expanding the country’s renewable energy portfolio.
Vice President Biden announced that 100 ABB transformers will be used at the new $300 million Lost Creek wind farm in northwest Missouri. Wind Capital Group, based in St. Louis, will break ground in August on what will become the largest wind farm in Missouri, with a capacity to provide power to about 50,000 homes. Associated Electric Cooperative of Springfield, MO, will purchase power from the wind farm for local usage.
The Vice President and U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, along with Missouri Governor Jay Nixon and Congressman Ike Skelton, took a walking tour of the large factory floor. This tour was led by Enrique Santacana, ABB president and CEO in North America, and ABB Jefferson City General Manager Jeff Weingarten, just before Biden and Locke addressed a crowd of nearly 400 ABB employees and invited guests.
Steadfast and innovative
Biden praised ABB as a “steadfast” and “innovative” company. He also recognized the employees of the ABB Jefferson City plant in particular for their continued hard work in the face of uncertain economic conditions.
U.S. Secretary Locke used his time at the podium to announce the creation of a new White House task force on smart grid issues. The electricity network is expected to become progressively “smarter” through greater use of advanced technologies that provide more control over power flows and fluctuations in consumer demand. In this way, intermittent power sources such as wind and solar can be better integrated into the grid.
Smart grid task force
Specifically, Locke pointed to the need for common standards to bring to the power grid the same kind of interoperability that has made technologies like ATM machines and the Internet ubiquitous.
ABB is a global leader in smart grid technology, and has already been instrumental in developing the very standards that Secretary Locke called for.
Joining the Vice President and the Secretary on stage were Governor Nixon, Congressman Skelton, and ABB employees Le Ann Ritter, Danny Fecthal, Dave Edwards, Wayne Cayce and Charlie Fisher, who had the honor of introducing Biden.
Jobs and energy security
After Locke’s smart grid announcement, the Vice President focused squarely on jobs. He returned often to the theme of “non-exportable jobs” that provide a good living for workers and also help move the U.S. toward greater energy independence and away from fossil fuels. He also cited the Lost Creek project as an example of how to “connect the dots” so that investments in one area, such as power transmission, can leverage investments made in others, such as wind power.
About ABB
ABB is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 120,000 people. The company's North American operations, headquartered in Cary, North Carolina, employ about 15,000 people in 20 manufacturing and other major facilities. For more information, visit: www.abb.com.
SOURCE: ABB Measurement & Analytics