Texas Panhandle commissioners agreed to give a big tax break to Chermac Energy reports the Amarillo Globe-News. Randall County commissioners recently voted to allow the proposed wind farm to pay about half of what it would in property taxes over the next ten years.
Chermac Energy gets a 100 percent tax abatement in exchange for paying $3.4 million over the same ten year period.
A couple more steps have to be taken before the decision is final. The county has to send notification of the agreement to other taxing entities, and then a final vote will be held.
Jamie McAlpin is the president of Chermac. He says this commitment is important to the wind farm’s development.
It’s not only financial, but public support that goes a long way when talking to equity people (about lending money),” he said Monday.
McAlpin says he’s about $50 million short of financing the deal. He estimates total cost at $210 million.