Lake Country Wind Energy Installs A 100 Meter Meteorological Tower in Kandiyohi County

Atwater, MN - August 12th, 2010.- Lake Country Wind Energy, LLC recently installed one of the tallest meteorological towers in Minnesota, a 100 meter (328 foot) lattice structure, within Gennessee Township, Kandiyohi County. The National Wind Assessments’ crew constructed the tower to further analyze the wind regime within Lake Country Wind Energy’s project area. This analysis along with data gathered from a 60 meter (197 feet) met tower located in Harrison Township, Kandiyohi County will help the project complete a 2 year wind study this September. The analysis thus far indicates the development area has a very viable wind resource.

“A 100 meter tower allows us to measure and collect wind data at hub height, or the height at which turbines operate,” says Kevin Romuld, President of National Wind Assessments. “This enables us to efficiently assess the wind energy resource, reduce the uncertainty and validate the wind regime of the project area. Lake Country Wind Energy’s 340 megawatt development will benefit from the latest met tower technology. The 100 meter lattice tower is one of the most advanced wind data assessment tools available for on-site analysis.”

Wind data will be used to calculate energy production estimates, ultimately identifying the best locations to site wind turbines for Lake Country Wind Energy’s development phases. The first 41 megawatt development phase has just entered the state’s permitting process. A site permit application was submitted to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission in early August.

“The 100 meter tower will be used to supplement existing data documented in our permit application, further enhancing our knowledge of the wind regime in the area,” says Chuck Burdick, lead developer for Lake Country Wind Energy. “We are hosting a project update presentation answering questions about the permitting process on August 16th at 6:30pm at the Atwater Community Center. Any signed landowner, investor, elected official or interested community member is invited to attend to learn more.”

Submission of the site permit application is the first step in the regulatory review process. The project will be permitted through the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (MPUC) and the Office of Energy Security. The MPUC has 180 days to issue a permit once the application is accepted. Lake Country Wind Energy’s site permit application can be downloaded at the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission and Dept. of Commerce’s website by typing in the permit’s docket number: IP6846/WS-10-798.

Lake Country Wind Energy, founded in July 2008, has the participation of over 300 landowners, with 26,500 acres of land under easement. Announced in February of 2010, the first phase will include 20 MM92, 2.05 megawatt REpower turbines and is anticipated for a late fall 2010 or an early 2011construction start date.

For development questions, please contact National Wind developer, Chuck Burdick at 612-746-6638. If you are an interested landowner, please contact field specialist, Jan Donahue at 320-295-7570 or stop by the local office located at 604 Pleasant Ave. W, Atwater.

About Lake Country Wind Energy, LLC: Lake Country Wind Energy, LLC is a community-owned wind energy company that plans to develop up to 340 megawatts (MW) of wind power generation facilities in Meeker and Kandiyohi Counties, Minnesota. The company’s financial commitment is to assure a portion of the project’s development proceeds are shared with its local investors, landowners, and the surrounding community. For more information, please visit www.lakecountrywindenergy.com.

About National Wind LLC: National Wind is the leader in developing utility-scale (50 megawatts or larger) community wind energy projects. We form powerful community wind energy partnerships with property owners, assuring that the project’s economic benefits are shared with the surrounding community. National Wind and its subsidiary, Wind Energy Developers, LLC, have participated in developing 15 wind energy projects and currently have over 4,000 megawatts in active development. National Wind projects are located in Minnesota, Iowa, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado and Ohio. The company has an additional 1,500 megawatts of wind energy in advanced feasibility study stages and is continually exploring expansion opportunities in other states. Please visit www.nationalwind.com for more information.