Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Resin pricing news
    • Videos
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • CEO Issue
    • Diversity
    • Best Places to Work
      • 2022 winners
    • Processor of the Year
    • Rising Stars
    • Women Breaking the Mold
      • 2022 class
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • Pellets and Politics
    • All Things Data
    • Viewpoint
    • From Pillar to Post
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • Fake Plastic Trees
  • Shop Floor
    • Blending
    • Compounding
    • Drying
    • Injection Molding
    • Purging
    • Robotics
    • Size Reduction
    • Structural Foam
    • Tooling
    • Training
  • Events
    • K Show Livestream
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Livestreams/Webinars
    • Editorial Livestreams
    • Ask the Expert
    • Plastics News Events Library
    • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics News Caps & Closures
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Plastics in Automotive
    • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • Resin Prices
    • All Resins
    • Commodity TPs
    • High Temp TPs
    • ETPs
    • Thermosets
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
    • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
    • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Historic Thermosets
    • Historic Recycled Plastics
  • Rankings & Data
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • Directory
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
    • Conair Sponsored Content
    • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
    • ENGEL Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
News
September 20, 2010 02:00 AM

Toray, Polytop oppose R.I. wind farm contract

Dan Hockensmith
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print

    Two plastics companies are among those appealing a recent decision by the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission to green light the United States' first large-scale offshore wind-energy farm in the Atlantic Ocean.

    Toray Plastics America Inc. and Polytop Corp. on Aug. 23 appealed the commission's Aug. 12 approval of a 20-year contract between development firm Deepwater Wind LLC of Hoboken, N.J., and utility company National Grid USA of New York to transmit power from Block Island — about 13 miles south of Rhode Island and 15 miles east of Montauk, N.Y. — to National Grid customers.

    The wind farm, a $220 million project that would result in the installation of six to eight European-style large wind turbines near the island, is scheduled to be operational in 2012.

    Under the contract, Deepwater Wind would sell electricity to National Grid for 24.4 cents a kilowatt-hour, with annual price increases of 3.5 percent over the life of the agreement. The baseline price could be lower if construction costs fall below the developers' expectations.

    Opponents charge that completion of the wind farm, which is estimated by its backers to be able to produce 1.3 million megawatts of electricity annually — about 15 percent of Rhode Island's electricity usage — would increase the state's market-based power transmission rates (the so-called “wire fee”) to a level that would outweigh the benefits of “green” energy for most customers.

    Toray and Polytop, New England environmental group Conservation Law Foundation and Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch have filed petitions with the state Supreme Court seeking to reverse the RIPUC decision.

    “As I've repeatedly said, I'm all for green energy,” Lynch said in an Aug. 23 statement. “But in this case, green energy translates into greenbacks for the developers of an anti-competitive project with a limited scope that will force us to buy overpriced electricity for the next 20 years in order to subsidize one company, rather than jobs that are so desperately needed.”

    The court has not indicated when it may hear the appeals.

    In filings with RIPUC, Toray — a North Kingston, R.I., film extruder owned by Toray Industries Inc. of Tokyo — argues that the Deepwater Wind project would cost it $304,732 in above-market payments in the first year of operation, and $7.3 million over the life of the contract with National Grid.

    According to its filings, Toray employs 600 in Rhode Island with a $79 million annual payroll.

    Polytop — a closures injection molder in Slatersville, R.I. — said its costs would be $46,000 in the first year and $1.1 million over 20 years. According to its filings, Polytop employs 200 with a $10 million annual payroll.

    Toray uses about 160 million kwh of electricity per year, Michael McElroy, a Providence, R.I.-based attorney for both companies, said Aug. 25 by telephone.

    Although Toray buys about 100 million kwh of that electricity from an alternative supplier —TransCanada Corp. of Calgary, Alberta — completion of the Block Island wind farm would drive up the wire fee, McElroy said. Toray produces between 50-60 kwh of electricity at its own natural gas cogeneration plant, but it would not be able to ramp up production to offset the higher charges, he added. Polytop uses about 16-17 million kwh of electricity per year, he said.

    Both companies have projects in place to reduce their energy use and practice recycling, McElroy said. He would not comment further on the appeals.

    “I certainly don't want to say anything to offend the Rhode Island Supreme Court,” he said.

    Through a spokeswoman, Deepwater Wind declined to comment. But CEO William Moore told the Providence Journal April 24 that his firm would “vigorously” defend the RIPUC decision.

    In filings with RIPUC, Deepwater Wind said it has spent $9 million already on the Block Island project. The firm plans a second wind farm in the Rhode Island Sound northeast of Block Island, 15-20 miles off the coastline near Narragansett Bay, and a third about 20 miles east of Avalon, N.J.

    Deepwater Wind's major investors are First Wind Holdings Inc. of Boston, a developer of U.S. onshore wind projects; D.E. Shaw & Co. of New York, a capital investment firm; and Ospraie Management LLC, a New York-based asset management firm.

    National Grid USA, a subsidiary of London-based National Grid plc, delivers electricity to about 3.3 million customers in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New York.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Poly-America neighbors sue for $7.8M after 2020 fire, allege respiratory damage
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    1
    Private equity buyer HIG outbids rivals for Avient's distribution unit
    2
    More volatility for North American PS, ABS resin prices
    3
    APR: US recyclers have capacity to grow, but not enough feedstock
    4
    Industry asks court to quash Canada's single-use plastics ban
    5
    Industry's newest concern: Public opposition to plastics recycling
    SIGN UP FOR TO RECEIVE THESE EMAILS AND ENEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Sustainable Plastics
    • Rubber News
    • Urethanes Technology
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Tire Business
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2022. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • CEO Issue
        • Diversity
        • Best Places to Work
          • 2022 winners
        • Processor of the Year
        • Rising Stars
        • Women Breaking the Mold
          • 2022 class
      • Newsletters
      • Resin pricing news
      • Videos
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • Pellets and Politics
      • All Things Data
      • Viewpoint
      • From Pillar to Post
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • Fake Plastic Trees
    • Shop Floor
      • Blending
      • Compounding
      • Drying
      • Injection Molding
      • Purging
      • Robotics
      • Size Reduction
      • Structural Foam
      • Tooling
      • Training
    • Events
      • K Show Livestream
      • Plastics News Events
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
        • Plastics News Caps & Closures
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
        • Plastics in Automotive
      • Industry Events
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
        • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Polymer Points Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Ask the Expert
      • Plastics News Events Library
        • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
        • Plastics in Healthcare Library
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
      • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Resin Prices
      • All Resins
      • Commodity TPs
        • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temp TPs
        • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
      • ETPs
        • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Thermosets
        • Historic Thermosets
      • Recycled Plastics
        • Historic Recycled Plastics
    • Rankings & Data
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • Directory
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified