Plans to build the world’s largest wind farm have been put on hold, as billionaire oil man T. Boone Pickens cites a lack of capital and infrastructure.
CNN reports that Pickens has announced that his 4,000 megawatt Pampa Wind Project planned for the Texas panhandle is on hold:
“I had hoped that Pampa would be the starting point, but transmission issues and the problem with the capital markets make that unfeasible at this point,” Pickens told CNN’s Ali Velshi. “I expect to continue development of the Pampa project, but not at the pace that I originally expected.”
The Pickens Plan was an attempt to wean the United States off foreign oil and switch to wind and natural gas. The project was to be set in four Texas Panhandle counties.
Pickens said he faced hurdles in routing the power from Texas to a distribution system. His plans were also stymied by a plunge in natural gas prices and a tightening credit market.
“The capital markets have dealt us all a setback, and I’m less aggressive with the Panhandle project than I have been,” Pickens said.
Pickens says he is still committed to 667 wind turbines that he has already ordered and would find homes for them.