This month U.S. Senator Mitt Romney toured a variety of important Utah energy infrastructure sites highlighting the state’s leadership in the development of innovative domestic energy production and critical minerals.
Stops from Senator Romney’s tour included Longroad Energy’s Milford Wind Project, the largest wind farm in Utah which has 97 turbines over 16,000 acres, the Align Renewable Natural Gas site in Milford, Rocky Mountain Power’s Blundell Geothermal Plant in Beaver County, and Rio Tinto’s Kennecott Copper mine in Bingham Canyon.
“One of the great things about our state is that we are really a leader in the area of renewable energy,” said Senator Romney. “We happen to see in this valley behind us all sorts of examples of technology that is being applied to see if we can’t create renewable sources of energy that will help us have power here in Utah, but also around the country and potentially around the globe. We have wind power, we have power that’s coming from recycled animal waste, we also have geothermal. And in each case we’re developing new advances, hopefully, that will be able to be adopted not just here but around the world.”
Utah’s domestic energy sources are a considerable economic driver for the state and especially rural communities. TWW’s recently found that Utah’s rural renewables drive an estimated $5.3 billion in total economic output, have created 4,368 direct jobs, paid $24.6 million in local property taxes, and $6.3 million in lease payments to farmers and ranchers.
Senator Romney’s tour highlights the important role that the State of Utah can play in developing new energy technologies and mining critical minerals that will drive the world’s economy well into the future.