Mark McGree to Receive UWIG Achievement Award

Springfield Va. - May 10, 2004 - The Utility Wind Interest Group (UWIG) announced today that Mark McGree, Director of Resource Planning and Bidding for Xcel Energy Services, will be the first recipient of its Annual Achievement Award. The citation for the award notes McGree as providing "sustained contributions to the responsible growth of wind power in the United States." The award will be presented to McGree by Brad Reeve, President of UWIG, at UWIG's annual meeting held May 17 in Albuquerque, N.M.

According to Charles Smith, executive director of UWIG, the award recognizes McGree's role as a critical supporter for the UWIG project on characterizing the impacts of large wind facilities on power system operations planning. "Mark offered Xcel Energy's system in the Upper Midwest as a case study and committed significant financial support to making the project happen. This project marked a historic shift in UWIG's role in the wind industry from information exchange and networking to collaborative research and development, a move that continues today," he said.

Smith noted that McGree has had an extensive association with UWIG since the mid 1990s, serving on the UWIG Board of Directors: "He has helped provide principled leadership in the industry and become a key supporter for wind power."

The UWIG annual meeting is being held in conjunction with a workshop on wind integration co-sponsored by UWIG, the American Wind Energy Association, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and Cigré. UWIG nonmembers are welcome to attend both events.

The Utility Wind Interest Group was established in 1989 to provide a forum for the critical analysis of wind technology for utility applications and to serve as a source of credible information on the status of wind technology and deployment. The group holds technical wind forums and engages in other technical program activities through the coordinated efforts and actions of its members. It operates in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy and NREL, which provide co-funding for the group. The UWIG currently has 51 members spanning 21 states, including investor-owned, public power, and rural electric cooperative utilities, as well as associate member corporate, government, and academic organizations.