enXco, an EDF Energies Nouvelles Company have announced plans to develop 351 megawatts of wind power in Minnesota and North Dakota by the end of 2011.
enXco will develop and build the 201 MW Nobles Wind Project located in Nobles County in southwestern Minnesota and the 150 MW Merricourt Wind Project in Dickey & McIntosh counties in southeastern North Dakota. The projects are expected to be operational by the end of 2010 and 2011 respectively, and will be transferred to Northern States Power Co. — Minnesota, an Xcel Energy company, upon completion.
This agreement between enXco and Xcel Energy builds on the experience the two companies attained through their joint developments over the past several years. These new projects bring the total to 784 MW developed for Xcel Energy including Grand Meadow Wind Farm, Fenton Wind Project, Viking Wind Project and Chanarambie Wind Project all located in Minnesota as well as Peetz Wind Project in Colorado.
“enXco is pleased to extend an already successful relationship with Xcel Energy and to continue to add renewable resources to the energy supply mix in the Upper Midwest,” said Steve Peluso, vice president of development in the Midwest Region.
Under the agreement, Xcel Energy will seek needed regulatory approvals to develop both projects. Together, Nobles and Merricourt will produce enough electricity to power approximately 110,000 homes.
“Xcel Energy already is the nation’s No. 1 wind power provider, and this agreement advances our commitment to meet aggressive renewable energy requirements in the states we serve,” said Richard C. Kelly, Xcel Energy’s chairman, president and CEO. “We believe our partnership with enXco also will allow us to meet our goals in a cost-effective manner for our customers.”
The announcement was met with support from both states’ governors. Governor John Hoeven (ND) said, “North Dakota is continuing to aggressively develop wind energy. This is just the kind of project we envisioned when we initiated tax credits and other measures to create a favorable business environment for wind energy development in our state.”
Governor Tim Pawlenty (MN) added, “Wind power has great potential for providing clean, renewable energy. Xcel Energy’s leadership is very important as we work to meet Minnesota’s goal of securing 25 percent of our energy from renewable sources by the year 2025. More wind power in Minnesota means more clean energy and additional opportunities to create green jobs related to this type of development.”
About enXco, an EDF EN Company:
enXco – an EDF Energies Nouvelles Company (
FR:EEN:
news,
chart,
profile) , develops, constructs, operates and manages renewable energy projects throughout the United States. For more than two decades, we have been a leader inwind-energy focusing on large-scale windprojects.Today enXco’s portfolio includes solarand biomass technologies, in an effort to help drive our nation’s transition to a sustainable energy economy. enXco is a significant owner and developer of wind-energy installations in the United States, and is the largest third-party operations & maintenance provider for wind farms in North America. (
www.enxco.com) (
www.edf-energies.nouvelles.com)
Source: enXco