ALBANY -- The New York State Public Service Commission has authorized the construction and operation of Marble River LLC's wind-energy project in the towns of Clinton and Ellenburg.

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The project is capable of generating up to 229 megawatts of electricity and connecting with an existing New York Power Authority transmission line.

In granting a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity, the commission included conditions to assure that the reliability of the interconnected electric grid is addressed and that the facility is managed in a safe and environmentally sound manner.

Marble River, when constructed, will be the second-largest individual wind-energy project in New York. The largest is the 320-megawatt Maple Ridge in Lowville, Lewis County.

The developer estimates the annual economic impact of Marble River will be more than $5 million.

"Given the fact that fossil fuels are becoming increasingly expensive and contribute to greenhouse-gas emissions, it is in our best interests to foster the development of renewable-energy sources, including wind-power projects, whose output can be delivered to the electric grid," Commission Chairman Garry Brown said in a news release.

"The Marble River project will generate electricity utilizing renewable-resource technology to provide clean and renewable supplies of electricity to the wholesale energy market."

Marble River plans to build up to 109 wind turbines, each rated at 2.1 megawatts.

In addition to the wind turbines, the project will include access roads, above-ground and underground electrical collection lines, an interconnection substation, a construction staging area and a centrally located operations and maintenance facility.

The wind turbines will range in height up to 407 feet, measured when a rotor blade is at the top of its rotation.

A State Environmental Quality Review was conducted with the towns of Clinton and Ellenburg acting as co-lead agencies and the commission as an involved agency.

Marble River is a joint venture of Horizon Wind Energy LLC and AES-Acciona Energy NY, LLC.

The commission's decision may be obtained from its Web site at www.dps.state.ny.us by accessing the File Room section of the homepage and referencing Case 07-E-1343.