Xcel, Northern States Power Co.-Minnesota’s owner, will procure the proposed energy from Courtenay Wind Farm and Odell Wind Farm located in North Dakota and Minnesota, respectively.
Each of these projects has a rated capacity of 200MW, comprising 125 wind turbines.
Northern States Power Co.-Minnesota president and CEO Dave Sparby said that the agreement is aimed at cutting down power costs for customers and diversify the company’s energy portfolio and narrow down carbon emissions.
"We’re proposing to add substantial amounts of wind power now to take advantage of very attractive prices for our customers that resulted from Congress’ extension of the federal renewable electricity Production Tax Credit," added Sparby.
The Courtenay project will pay annual tax revenues of $850,000 and create 200 construction and 10 to 12 permanent jobs, while Odell Wind Farm will facilitate taxes of $840,000, creating 200 construction and 12 permanent jobs.
Geronimo Wind Energy president Blake Nixon noted: "Geronimo is excited to once again work with Xcel Energy and to deliver an additional 400 megawatts of long-term, low cost renewable energy to Xcel Energy’s customers."
