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T. Boone Pickens wagers $2 billion on wind power

Posted May 16th 2008 4:49PM by Peter Cohan
Filed under: General Electric (GE)

USA Today reports that oil billionaire T. Boone Pickens is placing a $2 billion bet on wind power. Pickens' Mesa Power plans to build the Pampa Wind Project in the Texas Panhandle. It will eventually cover 400,000 acres and generate enough power for more than 1.3 million homes -- making it the largest wind farm in the world.

And Pickens is helping General Electric Company (NYSE: GE) in the bargain. That's because he's buying GE turbine technology. GE is expected to deliver 667, 1.5-megawatt wind turbines in 2010 and 2011. Jeffrey Immelt, GE Chairman and CEO said, "As America's demand for energy escalates, it is clear that wind can and will play a bigger part in meeting that need. We're excited to partner with an energy visionary like T. Boone Pickens to bring our wind technology to the marketplace."

With oil hitting $127 a barrel, I hope this project is the first of many. It will take many different sources of alternative energy to reduce U.S. demand for black gold. Wind power is certainly a good alternative. And if Pickens and GE get richer in the process, that's fine by me.

Peter Cohan is president of Peter S. Cohan & Associates, a management consulting and venture capital firm. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter. He owns GE shares.

Tags: alternative energy, AlternativeEnergy, inthenews, jeffrey immelt, JeffreyImmelt, t. boone pickens, T.BoonePickens, wind power, WindPower

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