Dion Elected Chairman of Berkshire Wind Power Cooperative Corporation

Wakefield Municipal Gas & Light Department General Manager Pete Dion was recently elected president and chairman of the Board of Directors of Berkshire Wind Power Cooperative Corporation (BWPCC), a nonprofit public power corporation comprised of 14 municipal utilities and the Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company.

BWPCC was created by the municipal utiliities and MMWEC in 2008 to purchase the Berkshire Wind Power Project in Hancock, Mass., the largest wind power initiative under construction in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. General Manager Dion has served on the BWPCC Board of Directors since its inception.

The 10-turbine project, which was completed and brought online in May 2011, operates at an estimated capacity factor of approximately 40 percent and is expected to produce more than 52,500-megawatt hours of electricity a year, enough to power approximately 6,000 homes. In addition, the project will offset the production of nearly 612,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide and the use of 1.7 million barrels of oil.

Joining Wakefield and MMWEC in the BWPCC are the Massachusetts communities of Ashburnham, Boylston, Groton, Holden, Hull, Ipswich, Marblehead, Paxton, Peabody, Shrewsbury, Sterling, Templeton and West Boylston.

In addition to serving as Chairman of the Board of Berkshire Wind Power Cooperative Corporation, General Manager Dion serves as President of MMWEC and is active in the American Public Power Association (APPA). He has been recognized by APPA for his contributions to the organization and its various committees.