Republic Wind is a privately funded energy project. No federal subsidies or ratepayer dollars will be used to build Republic Wind, and once built, the project will provide a long-term competitive source of electricity for the state’s utility grid.
Ohio is part of the PJM regional transmission organization, a wholesale power market encompassing all or part of 13 states. The North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association posted a helpful blog article comparing purchasing electricity from the PJM grid to shopping at a grocery store:
“When you buy your groceries, you probably go to the local grocery store. Think of your electricity supplier like your grocery store: it doesn’t grow its own food or have its own food processing plants, rather it buys the groceries that it sells to you from wholesale food suppliers.”
The electricity market works similarly, with proximity of power plants neither positively nor adversely affecting electricity rates. The community does, however, benefit from the jobs, taxes, and lease payments generated by a local wind farm over the long term.