Presentations from Webinar on September 28, 2010

Background

The transportation sector has played a key role in ensuring sustainable and economically efficient advancement of the wind energy industry in the United States, now becoming increasingly important in the Great Lakes region as offshore wind development begins to ramp up. Responding to requests from members of its Offshore Wind Workgroup who were interested in learning more about the underlying infrastructure of the water-based transportation sector, the Great Lakes Wind Collaborative (GLWC) surveyed ports in the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway region (GLSLS) to assess their readiness and willingness to handle wind turbine cargo.

Webinar

The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) Transportation & Logistics Working Group sponsored a webinar for AWEA members and members of the GLWC on September 28, 2010.

This webinar provided an overview of the findings the GLWC documented in its report The Role of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway Ports in the Advancement of the Wind Energy Industry.

The webinar featured the following presenters:

• John Hummer, Project Manager, Great Lakes Wind Collaborative, Great Lakes Commission
• Tim Downey, International Trade Specialist, Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (SLSDC), Office of Trade Development
• Anjali Patel, Spiegel & McDiarmid LLP, Washington, D.C.

Presentations are linked below in the order they were presented during the webinar. Notes: Tim Downey had two separate parts to his presentation and Anjali Patel’s presentation was delivered by John Hummer during the webinar.

• John Hummer: Introduction of the GLWC, wind in the Great Lakes region, and the impetus for the project
• Tim Downey, Part 1: Wind on the Water: Eco-, Eco-
• Anjali Patel: Port Survey Methodology and Results
• Tim Downey, Part 2: Offshore Needs: Turbine Installation, Support Vessels

Final Port Survey Report

The Role of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway Ports in the Advancement of the Wind Energy Industry provides a general overview of the Great Lakes wind energy industry as well as a comprehensive discussion of the role of the GLSLS ports in advancing the industry. The document's appendix provides detailed information about the individual ports and/or port operators who responded to the GLWC survey including contact information, infrastructure specifications (handling equipment, staging and dockage area), bimodal transportation options, and past experience handling wind turbine components.