Wind credits will remain at 1.8¢ a kilowatt hour in 2004, the IRS said in late March.

Owners of wind farms whose projects went into service by the end of last year can claim a tax credit of 1.8¢ a kilowatt hour on the electricity generated and sold to unrelated parties.  The credits run for 10 years after a project is put into service.  The credits are adjusted each year for inflation.

The IRS said in late March that inflation has been too low to justify an increase in the credit amount.  It also said the average price at which electricity from wind farms was sold in the United States last year was 3.24¢ a kilowatt hour.  This is down from 4.85¢ the year before.  Only sales under post-1989 contracts are taken into account.  Spot sales through power pools are not counted.

Keith Martin