The Michigan Public Service Commission has approved a build-transfer agreement between Consumers Energy and Delaware-based Heartland Farms Wind Project for the construction of 72 wind turbines in Fulton, Washington, Newark, New Haven, North Shade and North Star townships. | By Greg Nelson | The Morning Sun | December 24, 2021 | www.themorningsun.com
Gratiot County is in line to get its sixth wind farm.
The Michigan Public Service Commission has approved a build-transfer agreement between Consumers Energy and Delaware-based Heartland Farms Wind Project for the construction of 72 wind turbines in Fulton, Washington, Newark, New Haven, North Shade and North Star townships.
When complete it will have the capacity to produce up to 200 megawatts of electricity.
Heartland Farms will develop the wind park, including obtaining all real estate and interconnection agreements, and the installation of the turbines and all other equipment, according to the MPSC application.
Once the facility is finished and goes online, which is planned before Dec. 31, 2022, Consumers Energy will take ownership.
After it goes into operation the county will have nearly 420 wind turbines in service.
The Heartland Farms project will be the second owned by Consumers Energy in the southern part of the county.
Gratiot Wind Farms, which includes 60 turbines in North Shade and New Haven townships, went online in late 2020.
The others located in Gratiot County are:
Polaris Wind Energy, an affiliate of Chicago-based Invenergy, which has two other wind parks in the county, built 68 turbines in Lafayette, Hamilton, and North Star townships that produce 160 megawatts of electricity for DTE.
Pine River Wind Energy has 29 turbines operating in Pine River Township and another 36 in Isabella County’s Coe Township. It was also developed by Invenergy to supply electricity for DTE.
Beebe Community Wind Farm, which supplies electricity for Consumers Energy, has 55 turbines in North Star, Emerson and Washington townships.
Invenergy also developed the county’s first wind farm, and the state’s largest in 2012, which features 133 turbines in Wheeler, Bethany, Emerson and Lafayette townships.
When the new wind farm is finished it will leave only four of the county’s 16 townships, Arcada, Elba, Seville and Sumner townships, without a wind park.
Turbines are not allowed to be constructed in Arcada Township because it’s home to the county’s only airport and their 500-foot height could interfere with flight patterns.
According to statistics from Greater Gratiot Development Inc., more than $1 billion has been invested in wind development in the county since 2012, providing local governments and schools a total of $57 million in new tax revenue.
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2021/12/24/gratiot-to-get-6th-wind-farm/