North Dakota, the state with the largest potential to generate wind energy, has about a quarter of the generating capacity of California, the state with the 17th greatest potential.
Montana, the state with the fifth greatest capacity, has one-tenth.
One explanation is cost. The price tag of a modest 200 MW plant is $500 million. Local government often needs to come up with $10 million to $15 million to help get projects off the ground.
Utilities in the wind-intensive Midwest and plains states are slowly coming around. Edison International, for instance, says it operates 1,055 MW of wind energy, the fifth largest portfolio in the country. Its Edison Mission Energy unit has 513 MW online or under construction and another 370 MW expected this year. The goal is 2,000 MW by the end of 2010.
Here are the states with the greatest wind power potential:
