Pickens Set on Turning Texas into Saudi Arabia of Wind

by | Jul 23, 2008

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pickens.jpgMillionaire T. Boone Pickens is planning to turn Texas into the Saudi Arabia of wind, but some question his motive, AdAge reports.

As part of the “Pickens Plan,” Pickens is spending $58 million on an advertising blitz, arguing that America’s $700 billion-a-year-oil habit can be kicked with an expansion of wind power.

The Pickens spots started airing on national cable networks such as CNN and MSNBC and full-page ads ran in USA Today and the Wall Street Journal.

But critics point out that Pickens is pushing wind power at the same time he’s building the biggest wind farm in America on a 400,000-acre land in Texas Panhandle.

The plan lines up nicely with his business interests in Mesa Power, which recently spent $2 billion to purchase 667 General Electric wind turbines.

Jerry Taylor, senior fellow at the Cato Institute, says, “Everything he is outlining in this plan will pad his already ample bank account.”

According to AWEA’s April report, Texas is tops among states in both total and new wind power.

A recent U.S Department of Energy report examined the possibility of harnessing enough wind power to provide up to 20 percent of the nation’s total electricity needs by 2030.

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