A $16-million loan guarantee offer from the stimulus fund was given by the US Department of Energy (DOE) to wind turbine maker Nordic Windpower USA. Nordic announced the loan yesterday (July 2) and said that it will also use funds from the US Federal Financing Bank for the expansion of its Pocatello assembly plant in Idaho. Nordic is one of the first companies granted with the loan.

Over 75 new skilled jobs will be created with the Pocatello expansion. At least 19 megawatts of power will also be delivered to US and Uruguay customers starting this month.

Nordic specializes in the manufacture of two-bladed, utility-scale wind turbines with proprietary, flexible teeter hub technology, with its one-megawatt N1000 turbine designed to provide the lowest maintenance and installed cost, and high reliability.

The N1000's rotor blades flex at the hub, dissipating turbulent winds before they can damage the drive train. The blades can be attached to the hub and nacelle on the ground and then raised with a single crane lift. Heavier turbines usually need two to four crane lifts for the same assembly process. Nordic turbines are fit for community wind power developers to own and operate.

"The Department of Energy and its Loan Guarantee Division have been very responsive throughout the due diligence process and moved our application along rapidly. We thank them, and acknowledge WorldBusiness Capital, Inc. our excellent lending advisor, for its critical support in helping us to achieve a successful outcome,” said Nordic Windpower CFO, Prakash Ramachandran.

Nordic has its headquarters in Berkeley, California and its technology office in Bristol, UK.

-  Jen Balboa

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