January 15, 2008
Minnesota

Xcel to build wind farm near Austin

Xcel Energy Inc. has plants to build a new wind farm in southern Minnesota, the company said Tuesday.

Minneapolis-based energy provider Xcel said it has contracted with North Palm Springs, Calif. -based enXco Development Corp. to build 67 wind turbines, which each provide 1.5 megawatts of electricity. The turbines will be built in Grand Meadow, about 15 miles east of Austin, the company said.

Last week, the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission granted a site permit for the project, and construction is slated to begin in the spring. The company anticipates that it will begin producing power by the end of the year.

Mark Stoering, Xcel’s vice president of portfolio strategy and business development, said that the project was an important step in helping the company comply with the state’s New Generation Energy Act of 2007, which seeks to provide more renewable energy and less carbon emissions.

In response to the act, Minnesota created incentives to promote community-based energy to help meet a statewide mandate for 25 percent of its electricity coming from renewable resources by 2025.

Published January 15, 2008 by the Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal

Yahoo Finance

15 January 2008


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2008/01/15/xcel-to-build-wind-farm-near-austin/