Spanish utility Iberdrola SA invested $1.4 billion in new wind power in the U.S. during the first nine months of 2008.
That amount compares with its investment of $1.54 billion in all of 2007, according to a company statement issued Wednesday. The investments for both years added 780 megawatts of new wind-power capacity in the U.S.
The company invested $408 million of this year’s $1.4 billion in the third quarter, bringing 334 new megawatts of U.S. wind capacity online.
As part of its $4.5 billion takeover of Energy East (NYSE: EAS) for $4.5 billion, New York’s Public Service Commission required Iberdrola to invest $200,000 million, or 100 megawatts, of wind power in New York state. The agreement was finalized in September. Each wind farm built by Iberdrola must be approved by the state on a case-by-case basis.
Energy East owns New York State Electric & Gas Co. NYSEG has 1.7 million upstate customers, including 63,000 customers in the Albany region.
Iberdrola is the second largest producer of wind power in the United States. The company had revenue of $22.8 billion in 2007. (The largest producer of wind power in the country is Florida Power & Light).
Iberdrola has 697 megawatts of wind power in advanced stages of construction in the U.S. This year, it added wind power in Illinois, Iowa, Oregon and Pennsylvania.