Daniel Gross in Slate on Renewable Energy in Denver

Slate recently posted an interesting article by business writer Daniel Gross on the Denver Region's success in attracting a renewable energy cluster (what I refer to as the "Renewable Range").

The basic thesis of this article is that Colorado's proximity to clean energy generation opportunities in the great plains make it a natural hub for renewable energy manufacturing, research and generation.

Money quotes.

"The Mile High City occupies the high ground when it comes to clean energy—and clean living. Denver's sheer outdoorsiness can be by turns charming and infuriating. (The question "What do you do?" is likely to be answered with an outdoor activity, not a profession.) When I showed up at Gov. Bill Ritter's office, an aide was carting a bicycle rack out of the inner sanctum. And while the state's jewel of a capital may be testimony to its heritage of extraction—walls of Colorado-mined rose onyx, a dome covered in gold, and Works Progress Administration-era frescoes paying tribute to coal mining—a new Colorado is dawning. In November 2004, Denver-area citizens voted to boost sales taxes to expand the region's light-rail system, and the state's voters approved a ballot initiative mandating that utilities draw a chunk of electricity from renewable sources. The quasi-independent republic of Boulder is a capital of
composting, recycling, hybrid-driving, and general eco-fabulousness....

The Great Plains are the Saudi Arabia of wind, and the turbines—a tower can be up to 300 feet high, and each of the three blades weighs up to 7 tons—are very expensive to transport. Colorado's proximity to markets, its highly educated work force, and tax breaks drew Vestas, the Danish turbine maker. The Danes opened their first U.S. manufacturing facility in Windsor, Colo., in 2008, and have three more in the works in the state. The tower factory under construction in Pueblo will be the largest in the world. "We will be processing 200,000 metric tons of steel per year," said Hans Jefpersen, general manager of Vestas Blades America. Total capital investment: $700 million. Suppliers are following: Hexcel, an advanced carbon materials supplier based in Stamford, Conn., is setting up a 100-employee facility in Windsor."