August 4, 2015
Illinois

Wind developer plans Logan, Sangamon county projects

By Tim Landis, Business Editor | The State Journal-Register | Posted Aug. 3, 2015 | www.sj-r.com

A Springfield wind-energy company expects to break ground for a Logan County wind farm and to file for a permit in Sangamon County in coming months.

American Wind Energy Management also has significantly scaled back its Sangamon County project from 200 turbines first envisioned in 2009 to about a dozen in the first phase of construction.

“In Logan County, we’re nearly shovel ready,” Chris Nickell, site manager for American Wind Energy Management, said Monday. “It’s what we’re focusing on right now, so we can start construction next year.”

Nickell said regulations and financing have affected the timing and size of both projects.

“We’re a small company,” said Nickell, who made his comments after a Statehouse news conference where he joined other alternative-energy advocates in support of new carbon-emission standards proposed by the Obama administration on Monday.

AWEM plans a 175-megawatt wind farm of nearly 90 turbines in Logan County between the communities of New Holland and Middletown. The county has approved a permit for the project, said Nickell.

AWEM’s plans for western Sangamon County include about a dozen turbines in the first phase and 50 to 60 turbines in the second, according to Nickell, but the company has yet to file for a permit from the county.

“You have to compile a lot of data before you file with the county,” said Nickell, adding that the permit application could be filed as early as this fall.

Construction in Sangamon County, said Nickell, remains at least a year or two away.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2015/08/04/wind-developer-plans-logan-sangamon-county-projects/