Interstate Turbine Advisory Council (ITAC)

National List of Eligible Wind Turbines

A primary product of the ITAC collaboration was a unified list of small and mid-sized wind turbines that meet the performance, reliability, acoustic and warranty service expectations of incentive providers. This creation of this list was a critical step in the evolution of the distributed wind market. This list was used by ITAC member utilities and clean energy programs to qualify eligible wind power projects for incentives. (This list is no longer maintained or available.)

"Participation in the ITAC has been incredibly valuable.  It's a great vehicle for sharing information about turbines and using that information to improve our program. We're benefiting, as are the customers we serve."

Betsy Kauffman, Sr. Renewable Energy Program Manager, Energy Trust of Oregon

Mission

• To establish a collaborative group of public clean energy programs to evaluate and identify small and mid-sized wind turbines that fit the performance and durability expectations of incentive providers.
• Take advantage of the research and collective expertise with wind energy systems of the participating organizations.
• To pool resources to efficiently engage qualified experts to assist with technical review.
• To create a unified list of wind energy turbines that would potentially be eligible for participating state incentive programs.

Download a fact sheet about ITAC.

Background

Currently, several public clean energy programs, including those in New York, Wisconsin, Oregon, California, and others, maintain lists of wind turbines that are eligible for funding through their distributed wind energy incentive programs. The purpose of these lists is to ensure that rate- or taxpayer funding is supporting the installation of technology with a demonstrated record of durability, safety, and warranty service, as well as reasonable acoustic and performance characteristics.

Having individual state lists of eligible wind turbines is inefficient and causes confusion in the marketplace. In addition, managing these lists has proven a challenge for those clean energy funds. In several cases, the varied review processes used by the programs have failed to screen out unsuitable wind turbines.

Due to the relatively small number of incentive-supported wind systems installed in any given state, it is vital for states to collaborate and share intelligence about past and present product performance, customer and dealer experiences and program challenges.

Helpful Links

• Interstate Turbine Advisory Council: An ASES Wind Division Webinar - Recording
• ITAC Presentation by Mark Mayhew, NYSERDA and Val Stori, CESA from the Small Wind Association of Testers (SWAT) 2012 Conference
• Wind Turbine Health Impact Study: Report of Independent Expert Panel (MA DEP and DPH, Jan. 2012)