USA: Michigan Wind Energy Research Project Running Low on Funds

The Lake Michigan Offshore Wind Assessment Project is running low on cash, reports MiBiz.

The research buoy was deployed in the middle of the lake in the previous season 2011/2012 where it collected a ”truck load“ of data which is being processed.

The researchers are planning to deploy the buoy 10 miles offshore in Lake Michigan with the funds they have.

The reason for the deployment of the buoy so close to the shore is that this way it will be cheaper to collect data and to maintain the buoy if needed.

After 2012/2013 research season the budget for this project will be empty.

Arn Boezaart, director of MAREC said for MiBiz: “We have enough federal funds left to put the buoy back in the water for 2013.”

“After that, we have no money left for research. We may see some research assistance, perhaps in the next 30 days, but we’re definitely operating on the cheap for sure.”

The project was initially awarded $ 1.4 million from the U.S. Department of Energy, $250,000 from Wisconsin-based utility We Energies, $260,084 from U of M and a $30,000 grant from the Great Lakes office of the Sierra Club.

[mappress]

Offshore WIND staff, April 1, 2013; Image: gvsu