October 26, 2019
Indiana

NIPSCO announces another wind farm in White County

By Meredith Colias-Pete | Post-Tribune | Oct 25, 2019 | www.chicagotribune.com

The Northern Indiana Public Service Co. plans to help add another wind farm to White County as part of its plan to move off coal by 2028, the company said Thursday.

The Merrillville-based utility and Madrid, Spain-based EDP Renewables announced a joint deal for Indiana Crossroads Wind Farm, a 302-megawatt project expected to be operational in 2021.

It should generate enough electricity to power over 83,000 average homes annually, NIPSCO said. EDP Renewables will build the site, then transfer ownership to NIPSCO to run it.

Both companies announced another “build-and-transfer” deal in February for the 102-megawatt Rosewater Wind Farm with 25 turbines in White County. NIPSCO said that should be up and running in 2020.
[Most read] Donald Trump is coming to Chicago on Monday for his first visit to the city as president. Protesters are ready. »

Both the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission and White County recently approved the project and construction has started, NIPSCO said.

“It’s exciting to see another home-grown renewable project and investment break ground in Indiana,” NIPSCO President Violet Sistovaris said in a statement. “We’re proud to be working with EDF Renewables on Indiana Crossroads, as we continue our path of our customer-focused, ‘Your Energy, Your Future’ plan.”

EDP Renewables is the world’s fourth largest producer of wind energy, it said. Its North America subsidiary has several wind farms in the Midwest, including Meadow Lake Wind Farm in White County.

“Indiana has long been an important state for renewable energy development for EDP Renewables,” Miguel Prado, EDP Renewables North America CEO said in a release. “We are pleased to expand wind energy in White County and the state as well as build upon our partnership with NIPSCO as they advance their transition to clean energy sources.”

Along with Rosewater Wind Farm, NIPSCO announced two other planned wind farms in February: Jordan Creek, a 400 megawatt wind farm with 160 turbines built by Florida-based NextEra Energy Resources, LLC in Benton and Warren counties; and Roaming Bison, a 300 megawatt wind farm with 107 turbines built by Virginia-based Apex Clean Energy, LLC in White County.

It plans to announce more renewable energy projects next year after a second round of contract proposals went out earlier this month, it said. All wind farm projects were requests for proposals from its 2018 Integrated Resource Plan – its strategy to shift from coal to renewable electricity sources.

Last year, NIPSCO announced that plan to accelerate the retirement of its remaining coal-fired generating facilities and replace them with less costly renewable energy sources, a move that could result in up to $4 billion in savings, it said.

The company said it’s looking at wind, solar and battery storage technology as likely replacements as part of its electric generation strategy. The goal is to double the amount of existing renewable energy in Indiana, it later said.

It would also retire the R.M. Schahfer Generating Station (Units 14, 15, 17 and 18) in Wheatfield by 2023 and its Michigan City Generating Station (Unit 12) by 2028. It plans to retire all coal within the next 9 years.