Southwestern Electric Power Co. raises questions about identity, funding of group working to oppose wind project

Southwestern Electric Power Co. (SWEPCO), a unit of American Electric Power (AEP), questioned in a press release issued Tuesday the identity of a group working to oppose the proposed Wind Catcher Energy Connection project.

“A group known only as Protect Our Pocketbooks – which does not reveal the names of its backers or the sources of its substantial funding – is presenting misleading information to the public, including manipulation of statements by Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson,” Brian Bond, SWEPCO vice president of external affairs, said.

In January, Hutchinson wrote to the Arkansas Public Service Commission (PSC) requesting utilities pass that the benefits of federal corporate tax on to Arkansas families and businesses. A Protect Our Pocketbook ad recently associated the governor’s comments on the corporate federal tax cuts with the group’s campaign against Wind Catcher, according to Bond.

SWEPCO also addressed claims by Protect Our Pocketbooks that the project would not benefit Arkansas.

“The anonymous, tax-exempt opposition group claims that Arkansas gets none of the benefits of the project, which is incorrect and misleading,” Bond said. “Arkansas will receive the benefits of generation with no fuel costs, cost savings immediately and over the life of the project, the full value of the federal Production Tax Credits available to the project, and the economic development benefits of wind turbine components being manufactured in Arkansas.”

According to SWEPCO, the project will save customers approximately $4 billion over 25 years.

Wind Catcher includes acquisition of a 2,000-megawatt wind farm under construction in the Oklahoma Panhandle and construction of a 360-mile dedicated generation tie line to the Tulsa area. The $4.5 billion project will serve customers in Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas. SWEPCO will own 70 percent of the project, while SWEPCO’s sister company Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO) will own 30 percent.

The project is subject to approval by utility commissions in Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, and Oklahoma, as well as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.