Another cog in Iowa's alternative energy machine is wind power. The state ranks third among U.S. states with the most wind energy capacity

Clipper Windpower opened its wind turbine facility in Cedar Rapids in September 2005. The company builds its efficient Liberty turbines at the plant. Photo courtesy of Clipper Windpower.

installed behind California and Texas, according to the American Wind Energy Association. It also boasts the country's fifth largest wind farm at Storm Lake.
   The state recently added to its wind energy prowess with the opening of a wind turbine assembly plant in Cedar Rapids by Carpinteria, Calif.- based Clipper Windpower. The $22-million project opened in September 2006 and will eventually employ more than 140 at an average starting wage of $18.93 per hour.
   The plant will build the newly developed Clipper 2.5MV Liberty wind turbine, which the company says substantially increases the efficiency of wind- generated electricity. Clipper was awarded grants from the U.S. Department of Energy and the California Energy Commission for development of the turbine.
   Clipper chose Cedar Rapids over locations in several states including New Mexico, Colorado, Michigan, New York, Maryland and Nevada. The company says Cedar Rapids is attractive because of its good transportation systems, proximity to markets, availability of suppliers and the state's commitment to renewable energy sources.
   The plant is located in a 50,000- sq-ft. (4,600- sq.-m.) portion of a building formerly occupied by Goss Graphic Systems. Clipper is also a developer of wind farms, including the Flying Cloud project which opened in 2003 on 6,400 acres (2,600 hectares) in Dickinson County in northwestern Iowa. The wind plant is owned by PPM Energy.