US Windforce And Padoma Wind Power Announce The Formation of Joint Venture For Wind Energy Development

August 26, 2002 - On August 26, US WindForce of Wexford, Pennsylvania, and Padoma Wind Power of La Jolla, California, announced the formation of a joint venture for the purpose of developing, constructing, financing and selling as many as 1500 MW of wind energy projects, involving 10 or more project locations, over the next 5 years in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The projects will be located on a number of large sites with excellent wind resource in Maryland, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Virginia, and will deliver power to a region characterized by a large and growing demand for energy, a strong transmission system with excess capacity and a rapidly increasing environmental awareness. It is expected that as many as 340 MW of the 1500 MW could be operational by the end of 2003, thereby making this the largest combined project development process in the Eastern US.

"For the last 3 years, US WindForce has identified significant opportunities for wind energy development and created an extensive network of business, community and political relationships in the region", said David F. McAnally, Chairman and CEO of US WindForce. "We have now moved aggressively into the implementation phase of our development program, and we have taken a significant step to expand the capability of our organization by partnering with Padoma, whose principals bring over 45 years of hands-on wind experience and relationships to our team. Together we intend to make the Mid-Atlantic region the leader in new wind energy generation".

"We are very impressed by the accomplishments, business practices and organization of US Wind Force", said Jan C. Paulin, President and CEO of Padoma Wind Power, "and we are convinced that there is a tremendous synergy between our two organizations. We have been considering a diversification into the Eastern United States for some time, and partnering with US WindForce provides the best possible way for us to accomplish that".

Within the next couple of months the joint venture will commence the process of identifying and selecting one or more turbine manufacturers for the projects. "The downward pressure on energy prices has never been greater, and that in turn leads to the necessity of acquiring the most efficient and price competitive equipment", Paulin said.

"In the same time frame we hope that Congress will pass the energy package including both an extension of the Production Tax Credit and a Renewable Portfolio Standard. We also believe there is momentum in this region for support of state renewable portfolio standards or other state initiatives. It is time for the wind industry to be provided with a stable regulatory and political environment so that wind energy can reach its potential as an important element of the United States' long-term energy strategy", McAnally said. "This will not only allow the United States to reduce its growing dependence on foreign oil, but will significantly improve the environment and allow us to create a significant number of new jobs in the Mid-Atlantic region. We want to aggressively move forward with our scheduled projects. Because of the vast experience Padoma has in project implementation, this will be a win-win for the communities, job creation, the area states, and our two companies. We are truly excited about the prospects for this area and its fine people", he added.

For more information on these projects, please visit www.uswindforce.com.