Apex Clean Energy is a private U.S.-based company. We work with a variety of private investors to raise the capitol for the development and construction of our projects. Once a project has been built and is producing energy, the project owner will receive payments for the production of that electricity. That money will be used to make lease payments to participating landowners, pay taxes to Vermillion County, and contribute to the community benefit fund. Depending on the year in which a project is built in Vermillion County, some tax incentives may exist to reduce the cost of the electricity the project will produce. The federal government’s current wind energy Production Tax Credit (PTC) provides a tax credit (much like the mortgage interest tax credit utilized by many homeowners) for every kilowatt-hour of electricity the project produces. This money is not available as a cash grant but may be earned over the project’s first ten years of operation as the project produces electricity. It is not yet clear whether the PTC will still be active when and if a project Vermillion County is ultimately built.

The FAA requires wind turbines to be lit at night with red L-864 medium intensity aviation lighting. These have a brightness level of 2,000 candela (cd). Lighting technology has come a long way for wind turbines and projects are now starting to come online that will utilize Aircraft Detection Lighting Systems, or ADLS, to minimize the visual impact of required safety lighting. ADLS systems can detect when low flying aircraft are nearby so that the lights only illuminate when aircraft are in the area. This can significantly reduce nighttime lighting if the system is approved by the FAA. We look forward to exploring whether this wind project can utilize ADLS, and we will ensure the community is part of that discussion.

Though Vermillion County’s Wind Ordinance is not yet final, we expect that any ordinance the county passes will require the developer to submit a full decommissioning plan for county approval. Decommissioning plans specify how and when bonds will be placed to ensure funds are available to decommission a project when the time comes to do so. All decommissioning plans are designed to ensure that local taxpayers are not ultimately responsible for paying the costs associated with removing a wind farm’s components at the end of its useful life. We currently expect a modern wind farm to operate for at least 30 years, though it is possible the project’s life could be extended through a process called “repowering” at a future date.

We keep the specific financial terms of our leases confidential to protect the privacy of landowners and out of the hands of our competitors, but in total, a wind project in Vermillion County would be expected to inject $89.5 million into the local economy through landowner lease payments.

Wind energy is one of the cheapest forms of new generation available today, due to the fact that the fuel is free (wind!), and the cost of turbine technology is falling all the time. By adding more wind energy to their systems, grid operators are slowly reducing electric costs for all consumers. 

Since the unique community process we’re trying here in Vermillion has never been tried before, we’re not yet sure how long it might take. That said, we would hope to have a meaningful outcome and results to show from this process within about 18 months. We do not expect that a wind project could be fully built in Vermillion County until at least 2026.

No matter the type or size of a wind turbine, researchers have found no statistical evidence that home values near turbines are affected before, during, or after construction. On the contrary, wind projects can reduce property tax payments for individuals due to a more dispersed tax base and the new revenue these projects bring can benefit local schools and services, which often lead to increased property values overall. If it would be of interest to the community, we can work with a third-party appraiser to conduct a study of home values around other Indiana wind farms to consider how this might apply in Vermillion County specifically.

Only about one acre a half acres of land is taken out of production for each wind turbine that is sited (including land used for access roads). As part of our development process, we will work with the landowners and the community to figure out where and if this project should be located in the county. If we move forward, we will work with signed landowners to determine where specific turbines can be placed on their land. Access roads will be constructed for crews to get to and from turbines, and as part of any construction agreement with the county, we will ensure that all roads used by our crews will be left in as good a condition or better than we found them.

There are no known negative health effects for people of any age from being near wind turbines.