Staff Writer
PRESQUE ISLE – Northern Maine’s electric utility has committed $10,000 to support the development of New England’s first wind power technology program at Northern Maine Community College in Presque Isle.
Staff photo/Scott Mitchell Johnson
MAINE PUBLIC SERVICE donated $10,000 last Thursday to support the development of New England’s first wind power technology program at Northern Maine Community College (NMCC) in Presque Isle. The announcement came a week before the college launched its inaugural course offering in wind power, and as the institution prepared to welcome the first students enrolled in the new program this coming fall. To date, 28 prospective students from across the state have applied for admission to the wind power technology program. Attending the check presentation were, from left: Brian Hamel, vice chair of the Maine Public Service board of directors; Maine Public Service Co. President and Chief Executive Officer Brent M. Boyles, Maine Public Service board chair Richard Daigle, NMCC President Timothy Crowley, and Richard Engels, NMCC Foundation board chair.
Maine Public Service (MPS) board chair Richard Daigle was joined by his fellow board directors, MPS company officials and NMCC representatives in making the announcement last Thursday during a luncheon on the college campus.
“We are extremely pleased to play a part in the wind technology development program both from our technical expertise point of view, and from a modest financial point of view,” said Daigle. “Wind power has great potential to be a leading economic driver in northern Maine and other parts of the state moving forward.
“The faculty, staff and administrators at NMCC have demonstrated great foresight in laying the groundwork and developing the curriculum for this innovative new program,” he said. “Maine Public Service Co. is pleased to be the first of what we hope will be many organizations to make a financial contribution to support the wind power technology program at NMCC.”
The announcement came a week before the college launched its inaugural course offering in wind power, and as the institution prepared to welcome the first students enrolled in the new program this coming fall. To date, 28 prospective students from across the state have applied for admission to the wind power technology program.
“We are greatly appreciative of the support of Maine Public Service Co. as we get this new program off the ground,” said NMCC President Timothy Crowley. “MPS was an important player at the table as we first began discussions on wind power technology here at the college in 2007. Since that time, company officials have been instrumental in helping us get this program to the point we are at today. The wind power technology program will provide a valuable and needed resource for entities that erect wind turbines, as well as excellent placement opportunities for future graduates of the college.”
As part of his remarks, Crowley introduced NMCC’s newly hired wind power technology instructor, Wayne Kilcollins of Presque Isle, and two of the students who have been accepted into the program and are enrolled in Kilcollins’ Wind Energy Theories course in the coming semester. Richard Flannery of Caribou and Steven Gray of Woodland are among the two dozen students signed up for the first course offering to train wind power technicians that will be held at NMCC on Tuesday evenings beginning Jan. 13.
Wind power technicians are responsible for the operation, maintenance and repair of wind turbine generators. Prospective employers include wind farm owners/operators and turbine manufacturers who frequently contract with owner/operators to provide maintenance and support. Current entry-level wages for a wind power technician are $18 to $22 per hour.
A report released last year by a task force assembled by Gov. John E. Baldacci to consider issues of wind power development in Maine recommended that the state host two gigawatts of wind power by 2015 and three gigawatts by 2020. According to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Job and Economic Development Impact model, to host two gigawatts of power by the targeted deadline, at least 180 field technicians, administrators and managers will be needed.
“We are very excited about the new wind power technology curriculum and look forward to our continued working relationship with faculty and staff at NMCC as this program prepares to enroll its first students,” said MPS President and Chief Executive Officer Brent M. Boyles. “Training wind operators and technicians to support renewable energy projects provides an excellent opportunity for students and for the new emerging businesses in our area. We believe it is very important to get a skilled and trained workforce for northern Maine in the wind development field, and NMCC was kind enough to take that on.
“All too often we find ourselves being reactionary, but this time we got ahead of the power curve to help try to develop this industry,” he said. “We are committed to the success of this important new program and are proud to join with NMCC to once again show that Aroostook County is leading the way in the development of alternative energy resources.”
Currently, MPS has 1,250 megawatts of renewable energy interconnection requests and provides power transmission delivery for excess existing generation located in northern Maine including the 42-megawatt Mars Hill wind farm. Future projects have the potential to stimulate additional jobs, as well as research and development initiatives in renewable energy.
NMCC is ideally suited to provide wind power technology instruction. The college has existing programs in electrical construction and maintenance and computer electronics, two fields that serve as the foundations for the multi-disciplinary industry of wind power.
Demand in the electrical construction and maintenance program for this past fall prompted college officials to add an additional cohort of freshmen students. Enrollment in that associate degree program has risen by 18 percent over last fall.
“We are building the capacity to provide technicians to work in this field,” said Crowley. “We want to be recognized as the place to go for this [instruction] in Aroostook County and the state of Maine. We want to be out first, we want to be out best, and I really think we are in that position.”
