Feb 4 2015
NJR Clean Energy Ventures (NJRCEV), the unregulated distributed power subsidiary of New Jersey Resources, announced that the Carroll Area Wind Farm, its second onshore wind project, has achieved commercial operation. The wind farm represents an investment of approximately $42 million and is located on 1,100 acres of rural agricultural land in Carroll County, Iowa, approximately 65 miles northwest of Des Moines, Iowa.
The Carroll Area Wind Farm consists of nine Siemens SWT 2.3 megawatt, 108-meter rotor diameter wind turbines that are 80-meters high, with a total capacity of 20 megawatts. The site will produce enough energy to power over 7,500 homes annually.
“The Carroll Area Wind Farm represents NJR Clean Energy Ventures’ continuing efforts to strengthen and diversify its distributed power portfolio and commitment to make clean energy, and its benefits, more accessible,” said Laurence M. Downes, chairman and CEO of New Jersey Resources. “In meeting the growing demand for renewable energy, this project is in line with our core values of environmental stewardship and delivering long-term growth potential for our shareholders.”
The project’s entire energy output, capacity benefits and renewable attributes, will be sold through a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with MidAmerican Energy, Iowa’s largest energy company. MidAmerican Energy serves approximately 739,000 electric customers in Iowa, Illinois and South Dakota, as well as 719,000 natural gas customers in Iowa, Illinois, South Dakota and Nebraska. Additionally, NJRCEV expects the wind farm will qualify for federal production tax credits (PTC), which are based on a kilowatt-hour output. All PTCs generated by the Carroll Area Wind Farm will be utilized by NJR.
NJRCEV engaged Mortenson Construction, a leader in renewable energy construction with more than 124 completed wind projects to date, for the engineering, procurement and construction of the project.
NJRCEV invests in, owns and operates distributed power projects that generate clean energy and provide low-carbon energy solutions. These solutions benefit its customers, while providing growth opportunities for shareowners. NJRCEV’s approach initially focused on commercial and residential solar project development in New Jersey and has expanded to include onshore wind projects.
Source: http://www.njresources.com/