Sacramento Municipal Utility District Wins U.S. Department of Energy Wind Pioneer Award

Sacramento, Calif., October 30, 2007 – The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced that Sacramento (CA) Municipal Utility District (SMUD) is receiving the 2007 Wind Power Pioneer Award. The municipal utility was cited for its leadership, demonstrated success, innovation and long history with wind power technologies.

SMUD has developed wind power since 1993 when the municipal utility launched the 5-MW Solano wind project. Gathering data from the first turbines, SMUD replaced older units and added more powerful ones, like the Vestas V-90 3-MW model, as they became available. The project now generates 39 MW, with an additional 63 MW planned for 2008, putting SMUD on track to achieve its ambitious goal of a 20-percent renewable energy portfolio by 2011.

IEC is extremely proud to have participated in SMUD’s wind program over the past five-plus years in supporting the Solano Wind Project. IEC engineers continue to be extensively involved with the planning, project engineering, and construction management of each Phase of the Solano Wind Project.

SMUD was one of 14 public power utilities from across the United States that were nominated for the award this year. The DOE Wind Powering America program is presenting the award at the American Public Power Association’s 2007 Customer Connections Conference in Seattle, WA, on October 30.