Does a Surplus of Wind Turbines Mean Sweet Pickens for Higher Education?

Is this a fantasy deal for higher education? T. Boone Pickens is giving up (at least temporarily) on his plan to build the world’s largest wind farm in Texas, and his company “is looking for other projects that could use the $2-billion worth of wind turbines already on order,” according to a story in today’s Washington Post. Apparently, with capital markets in disarray, Mr. Pickens could not borrow money for the $2-billion in transmission lines needed to connect the wind farm to the grid.

Colleges have shown a growing interest in wind power in recent years, but in some cases they have also had trouble just putting in orders for turbines, because of high demand. Surely, Mr. Pickens’s company, Mesa Power, will try to find a buyer for the turbines among major wind projects in North America. But is there a philanthropic angle here as well? If the Texas oilman wants to unload some turbines, could colleges find an opportunity to get some from him?