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The Department of Energy said the nation's wind-power capacity increased by 27 percent last year, but wind farms operating in 36 states account for less than 1 percent of the U.S. power supply.
The American Wind Energy Association believes 20 percent of the nation's power could come from wind someday.
According to the association, Texas leads the nation in wind power, followed by California, Iowa, Minnesota and Washington.
Many companies are interested in building wind farms, and South Dakota stands to land several of them if the tax credit is extended and the transmission bottleneck can be fixed, he said.
"They know that we have an unlimited resource," Thune said. "South Dakota is the windiest state in the nation. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has estimated that South Dakota has enough wind potential to provide 55 percent of all the electrical needs in the country."