Danish wind turbine-maker Vestas has secured an order from MidAmerican Energy to supply turbines of 356MW capacity, for its 2GW Wind XI project located in Iowa.

Vestas

Image: Vestas to supply turbines for part of Wind XI project. Photo: Courtesy of Vestas Wind Systems A/S.

As per the order from Berkshire Hathaway Energy’s subsidiary, Vestas will supply and commission V110-2.0 MW turbines for the Wind XI project. The contract also includes a five year Active Output Management 5000 (AOM 5000) service agreement, which is a full-scope service package to maximize uptime and energy production.

Vestas stated that the turbines will be manufactured at its Colorado factories and delivery will begin in the second quarter of next year. Most of the wind turbine components will be sourced domestically, contributing to the growth of American manufacturing, the Danish company stated.

Vestas US and Canada sales and service division president Chris Brown said: “This project will harness low-cost wind energy for MidAmerican Energy’s customers, all while enhancing the reliability and resiliency of the grid.

“Vestas is proud to deliver its industry-leading technology to this project that will generate hundreds of millions of dollars in economic benefits, including landowner lease payments, tax payments, and long-term secure jobs.”

After becoming fully operational, the Wind XI project is expected to ensure that MidAmerican Energy produces nearly 90% of its energy retail load from wind.

This wind project will be built across multiple sites in Iowa and will be placed into between 2017 and 2019. Vestas expects that potential future order intake under the agreement could occur.

Besides the supply order, Vestas has also received a renewal order for service from an undisclosed customer for a wind portfolio of 602MW in the US.

The renewal extends the existing service agreements across several of Vestas’ turbine models and sites in Texas. With the service renewal, the customer will retain access to the turbine-maker’s global service network and expertise, which can improve its performance through data driven fleet optimisation services, predictable operations costs and maximised availability.

Presently, Vestas has a service portfolio of 79GW, which includes more than 8GW of non-Vestas turbines.