T. Boone Pickens is delaying his plans to build the world’s largest wind farm, according
to The Arizona Republic, which cited his remarks at a conference on Tuesday in Phoenix.

The Texas oilman, who has created a stir by his endorsement of wind power as part of a
national strategy to reduce dependence on foreign oil, cited the fall in natural gas
prices, a competing source of electricity generation, as a deterrent.

Pickens has leased hundreds of thousands of acres for a giant wind farm in West Texas,
where he plans to erect 2,700 turbines and produce energy for urban areas such as Dallas
and Fort Worth.

Mr. Pickens insisted that wind remained part of a national strategy, however, and
predicted that energy prices would go back up.

From The Arizona Republic:

Until natural-gas prices rise, Pickens said his wind farm and most others in
the country will not go forward because electricity from gas plants will be more
economical. Still, he was confident prices would rise.

He said Americans haven’t understood the nation’s energy challenges because
prices have been low, until last summer when oil hit a record $147 a barrel.

“You haven’t had the leadership in Washington to tell us what the problem
was,” he said. “The American people did not realize where we were. When oil went
to $100, I had a story to tell.”

Pickens’ plan focuses on using natural gas as a transportation fuel and then
counting on wind and solar to take the place of natural gas as a source to generate
electricity. Natural gas currently generates about 20 percent of the electricity in
the U.S.

According to Reuters, Mr. Pickens has already put in orders for $2 billion in wind
turbines, which will be delivered beginning in 2010.

Like other investors, Pickens has been hit hard by the collapse of stock prices.
He said his hedge fund is down 62 percent since July.

Rumor has it here in the state of Texas that there are jobs to be had in the
Panhandle. These jobs are associated with the wind farm. I have yet to find
where to apply but will keep looking and let you know.

I also believe they drove the prices up so that they could afford to drive them down
for a duration of time to wage an economic war against those like Mr. Pickens
who believe and are striving for alternative means of energy such as wind and solar.
Mr. Pickens is in it for the money, make no bones about it.

Big Oil is gunning for this new sustainable energy industry and they are playing
a wicked little game of cost undercutting to lull the American people into a false
sense of security by “drill, baby, drill”. Thus driving the prices back up and
hope that the entrepenuers will give up on alternate energy. The end result will
be that they can set the price of oil at anything they want plus take over this
new industry and keep us dancing like puppets on a string like they have for the
last century.  I wish them luck!

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