Detroit Edison, an electric utility serving 2.2 million customers in Southeastern Michigan, has issued a Request for Information (RFI) to identify potential partners interested in jointly developing wind energy projects with the company.

The RFI is intended to gauge the interest of potential and existing wind energy developers to enter into joint agreements with Detroit Edison to build Michigan-based wind energy farms capable of producing at least 75 megawatts of power by 2011.

This initiative would help the utility to achieve Michigan’s new Renewable Portfolio Standard for the state’s electric utilities to provide 10% of their retail electric sales from renewable resources by 2015. Detroit Edison expects to add about 1,200 megawatts of renewable power. The company plans to contract with third-party producers for at least half of that capacity, and plans to own renewable energy projects to meet the remainder.

DTE Energy has acquired easements on more than 60,000 acres of land in Huron County in Michigan’s Thumb region for development of large-scale wind farms. Detroit Edison is an operating unit of DTE Energy.

Detroit Edison has also entered into a 20-year agreement with Michigan-based Heritage Sustainable Energy to purchase wind power and renewable energy credits. Heritage Sustainable Energy, which is headquartered in Traverse City, plans to install 7 - 8 large-scale wind turbines at a wind farm near Cadillac in order to fulfill its agreement with Detroit Edison. The wind turbines, which will be capable of producing about 15 megawatts of renewable energy, are expected to be operational by late 2009.