Sunlight Planet serves as lead legal and regulatory advisor on Long Island wind turbine project

Riverhead, NY Sunlight Planet served as lead legal and regulatory advisor to Eastern Energy Systems in connection with the development and installation of the largest wind turbine.

The Northwind 100kW wind turbine was installed by Eastern Energy Systems for Half Hollow Nursery, Inc, a 1,200-acre wholesale nursery.

The wind turbine is expected to produce an estimated 157,555 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity per year for an annual energy savings of $30,000 per year for the wholesale nursery company, which will use wind power as its primary source of energy. The facility also will reduce CO2 emissions by 99.49 tons annually.

Half Hollow Nursery installed the 100kW wind turbine with the monetary support provided by the Long Island Power Authority's (LIPA) Backyard Wind Initiative, which was introduced by LIPA in January 2009. As a result of Sunlight Planet's advisory assistance, Half Hollow Nursery will also be able to take advantage of the federal Incentive Tax Credit and realize cash savings of 30% of the project cost, as well as significant tax savings by accelerated depreciation of the equipment and ancillary costs.

The parties' collective work on the Half Hollow Nursery project is among the first to combine dedicated legal and regulatory program management with expertise in project development, procurement and installation, fast-tracking project completion and interconnection.

"This project is an excellent example of the power of renewable energy," said New York Governor David Paterson "We not only have a smart resource that brings us closer to our goal of meeting 45% of our electricity needs through efficiency and renewable energy by 2015, but we are also jumpstarting our economy and creating jobs for the clean energy workforce."

"With Sunlight Planet's help, we made the promises of the green industry a reality," said Albert Harsch, director of corporate relations at Eastern Energy Systems.

"Sunlight Planet accelerated the project's timeline and final installation. Their work yielded significant tangible value to Eastern Energy Systems and Half Hollow Nursery, "This project represents the future of commercial wind and solar energy in the U.S.," said Paul Le Blanc, president and co-founder of Sunlight Planet. "Eastern Energy Systems are pioneering commercial scale renewable energy installations on Long Island and we are proud to have played a significant role with respect to legal, escrow structuring and regulatory matters, in assisting our client to successfully satisfy the legal and regulatory complexity of renewable energy projects of commercial size."

"I grew up just a few miles from Half Hollow Nursery, and I am thrilled that Sunlight Planet played a significant role in this project - reducing Long Island's reliance on fossil fuel and creating local jobs," says Rachael Simonoff Wexler, CEO and co-founder of Sunlight Planet.

As part of this project, in collaboration with Stony Brook University, The Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center (AERTC), Molloy College and Farmingdale State College will offer a total of six scholarships to winners of an essay contest hosted by Eastern Energy Systems.