The project, jointly developed by Southwest Wind Consulting, the Community Energy Developers Board and Lincoln County Enterprise Development, has received a grant from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and is scheduled for completion by mid-2011.
The Community Wind North project, which will be powered by twelve 2.5MW Clipper turbines, has received approval from the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission to sell all the produced electricity under a 20-year power purchase agreement to Xcel Energy’s Northern States Power Company.
The $58m project is expected to support about 30 construction jobs and pay nearly $28m in taxes and fees to the local and state economies, benefiting 150 local Minnesota investors and the Lincoln County landowners who will receive annual lease payments over the next 20 years.
Northern States Power, Minnesota president and CEO Judy Poferl said the Community Wind North project advances Xcel Energy’s commitment to provide customers with clean, renewable energy at a reasonable cost, and assists in meeting aggressive renewable energy requirements.
