Todd Woody, August 6, 2012 (Forbes)
“As Walmart installed solar panels on its 100th California store in San Diego last week, a 265-foot-high wind turbine was rising outside one of the retail giant’s distribution centers in the rural reaches of the Golden State…The 1-megawatt, General Electric turbine in Red Bluff is Walmart’s first such installation and the next stage in the company’s efforts to eventually obtain 100% of its energy from renewable sources…[with multiple tools] and renewable energy at a lot of different levels… “The company has installed micro-turbines atop light poles at stores in California and Massachusetts that generate between 2 to 3 kilowatts of electricity but Red Bluff is the first facility that will boast a full-sized wind turbine like those found on wind farms that generate hundreds of megawatts of power.”
click to enlarge“The GE wind turbine is expected to supply between 15% and 20% of the Red Bluff distribution’s electricity demand. As with Walmart’s solar installations, the retailer won’t own the turbine. In this case, Walmart will buy the electricity it generates under a 15-year power purchase agreement with Foundation Windpower, a Silicon Valley company that installs large turbines for businesses… “Walmart operates more than 100 distribution centers across the U.S. and the company is looking at the suitability of the sites for wind power…[but] don’t expect to see giant wind turbines go up at your local Walmart. Besides the inevitable headaches that would come from trying to obtain permits to install a 25-story machine with blades that stretch 250 feet, such a turbine would generate more electricity than a typical store needs…”
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