Featuring 64 Siemens direct-drive turbines, each rated at 3.2MW, the $345m Bison 4 wind facility increases the Bison complex’s total capacity to nearly 500MW, making it the largest wind project in North Dakota.
Power generated from the Bison 4 facility is transferred to the company’s customers through a 465-mile direct current transmission line linking Center, North Dakota, and Duluth, Minnesota.
Allete chairman, president and CEO Al Hodnik said: "We’ve made significant strides over the last eight years to bring our energy generation into better balance.
"Development of renewable energy from wind and water is rapidly transforming our nation’s energy landscape and with the addition of nearly 500 megawatts of wind from the Bison development on our system, we are providing cleaner energy while maintaining the affordability and reliability of electric power our customers in northeastern Minnesota expect."
The Bison 4 has been developed as part of the company’s strategic EnergyForward plan, which aims to diversify energy supply while reducing carbon emissions at power plants.
Minnesota Power chief operating officer Brad Oachs said: "With this substantial addition of wind to our portfolio, we are meeting Minnesota’s renewable standard of 25 percent renewable energy by 2025, a decade early.
"It reflects our commitment to cleaner energy and the execution of our EnergyForward plan to a more diversified energy mix of one-third renewable, one-third coal and one-third natural gas."
Image: The 205MW Bison 4 wind facility in North Dakota, US, features Siemens’ 3MW D3 platform wind turbines. Photo: courtesy of Siemens AG.
