3TIER Signs Multiple Contracts for FirstLook Assessment

“FirstLook simplifies and shortens a traditionally complex assessment process, but still delivers the thorough, detailed information we need to move quickly on a project,” said Sean Finnerty, senior vice president of Competitive Power Ventures (CPV). CPV, a wind developer with projects in the United States and Canada, uses the FirstLook tool and reports to rapidly identify potential sites and get the critical information they need to acquire land for their projects.

Many of the FirstLook contracts are bundled deals in which the companies are purchasing multiple reports for a discounted price. Individual FirstLook Professional reports cost $2,500.

“FirstLook does exactly what its name says: it provides an initial look at potential wind sites for customers, but at a tenth of the price of a traditional wind assessment,” said Kenneth Westrick, founder and CEO of 3TIER, the largest provider of global renewable energy assessment and forecasting.

“In just minutes, FirstLook produces a complete wind assessment report, delivered in PDF format directly to the customer over the Internet,” Westrick said. “You can trust FirstLook because it uses one of the most rigorous scientific methods to assess uncertainty and validate accuracy.  There is no other product on the market with the same capabilities or reliability.”

Launched by 3TIER in June 2007, FirstLook provides online access to the first geographically seamless national wind data set to better guide and inform renewable energy projects.  Additionally, customers can augment FirstLook’s wind assessment by purchasing geographic information system (GIS) layers to evaluate annual average wind speeds at specific grid points and at certain heights, allowing customers to customize the FirstLook data to more quickly prospect and map potential wind power sites. CVP and another U.S. wind developer recently purchased the GIS layers in addition to FirstLook reports.

Other companies purchasing FirstLook reports include: Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company, Phoenix Engineering, Synergy Wind Pty Ltd and Western Community Energy.

Technical highlights of FirstLook include:

• Accessible via the Internet 24 hours a day, 365 days a year;
• Uses 3TIER’s advanced numerical weather prediction (NWP) modeling technology.  Model simulations were made at a spatial resolution of 5 km and are interpolated for specific areas; and
• The 5 km map of the continental U.S. was based upon observations from 2,000 meteorological towers, which were used to correct the simulations and provide clients with a unique confidence rating for each report.

 
In addition to FirstLook, 3TIER provides a full suite of assessment and forecasting products for wind, hydro and solar energy projects.  3TIER uses its knowledge about weather, climate and their impacts on weather-driven renewable energy resources to help clients make better decisions about their investments – before, during and after their projects are built.

About 3TIER:
Seattle-based 3TIER is the largest independent provider of wind, solar and hydro energy assessment and power forecasting worldwide. People around the world turn to 3TIER when they want the best scientific information to make decisions about their renewable energy projects—from the prospecting stage to operations. For more information, visit 3tiergroup.com.

CPV Renewable Energy Company:
CPV Renewable Energy Company develops wind energy projects from conception through construction and commercial operation. It focuses on creating economic as well as environmentally efficient wind energy projects in the continental United States and Canada. CPV Renewable Energy Company operates under Competitive Power Ventures, a greenfield development, asset management and transaction execution company focused on the North American power generation market. For more information, visit www.cpv.com.

Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company:
Oklahoma Gas and Electric Company serves more than 755,000 retail customers in Oklahoma and western Arkansas, and a number of wholesale customers throughout the region.  OG&E, with about 6,100 megawatts of capacity, generates electricity from natural gas, low-sulfur Wyoming coal, and wind. 

Synergy International Incorporated (SII):
SII is the inventor, producer, and installer of many environmental technologies.  The organization started with the development of modern wind turbines (Aero-Power Systems) in 1977, leading in the 1980's to the deployment of the first Wind Farms in Altamont Pass, California.  This was followed by a period of whole-systems habitat design with the Farallones Institute, and subsequently, development of an advanced ducted wind turbine called Turbostar.  Synergy is currently developing building-integrated photovoltaic, wind and stirling engine micro-utilities.   Utilizing ducted shrouds to accelerate the mass flow of the wind and vertical axis wind turbines, we are completing the first Wind and PV powered high-rise in North and South America.

Western Community Energy:
Western Community Energy (WCE) develops community scale renewable energy projects that can provide significant economic value to its owners. WCE strongly believes that small, locally-owned renewable energy projects have the ability to improve, maintain, and enable the rural way of life, and WCE is seeking to be the premier US supplier of turn-key solutions for locally-owned renewable energy projects.