Ørsted Completes the Onshore Plum Creek Wind Project
The 82-wind turbine project, located in Wayne County, Nebraska, demonstrates the company’s expanding U.S. footprint and track record of on-time completions.
Ørsted has completed a 230MW wind farm in Nebraska’s Wayne County. Plum Creek consists of 82 wind turbines and represents Ørsted‘s first operational project in Nebraska, further adding to the regional diversity of the portfolio. Even amidst global challenges, the project was completed on schedule and brings Ørsted‘s operational onshore capacity to 1.6GW.
Ørsted has entered into agreements with a number of companies to purchase the power generated, including Vail Resorts, The J.M. Smucker Company and the Avery Dennison Corporation. Not only will Plum Creek help these organizations meet their renewable energy targets with clean, secure and low-cost energy, the project will also yield over USD 3 million in local community benefits annually in the Wayne County area. Some of the largest beneficiaries are the Norfolk and Windside school districts in addition to other sectors of the community, including emergency services, the local hospital, and community college.
“Thanks to our team working on this project and our dedicated partners for their focus and determination in delivering the project on schedule despite the very challenging circumstances we face today” said Neil O’Donovan, Ørsted Senior Vice President and COO of Onshore. “Plum Creek is our first project in SPP (Southwest Power Pool) territory, a market which will play an important part of our ongoing growth in North America. The second project, Willow Creek, financed as a portfolio with Plum Creek, is on schedule for completion later this year.”
Ørsted delivered Plum Creek working with a group of leading tax equity providers, equipment suppliers and construction companies, including GE Energy Financial Services and BHE Renewables as tax equity providers, GE Renewables and Blattner Energy. All were instrumental to the smooth completion of the project.
Vikas Anand, GE Renewable Energy’s CEO for Onshore Wind, Americas, said, “GE Renewable Energy is proud to be a part of the Plum Creek wind project, working together to deliver, install and commission 82 units during this unprecedented time. Our high-tech 2.8-127 turbines are ideal for this region and will help to bring clean, affordable renewable energy to Ørsted‘s customers now and well into the future. We are very pleased to continue to build upon our long-standing partnership with the Ørsted onshore team and their predecessor Lincoln Clean Energy to bring more than 2.5GW of onshore wind into operation by the end of 2020″.
