Hoosier Wind Farm Explained

Hoosier Wind Farm
Location Map Caption:Location of Hoosier Wind Farm in Indiana
Location:Fowler, Indiana
Coordinates:40.6°N -87.32°W
Owner:IPL, enXco
Status:O
Ps Units Operational:53 REpower wind turbines, @2 MW
Ps Electrical Capacity:106 MW
Commissioned:October 2009

Hoosier Wind Farm is a wind farm in Benton County, Indiana. It consists of 53 REpower 2 MW wind turbines, for a total nameplate capacity of 106 MW.[1] [2] The enXco subsidiary of EDF Energies Nouvelles built the wind farm, with Mortenson Construction's Renewable Energy Group as the subcontractor. Indianapolis Power & Light (IPL) has a 20-year contract to purchase and distribute the wind farm's output.

History

IPL and enXco announced their plan to build the wind farm in April, 2008.[3] The original plan called for 67 GE 1.5 MW wind turbines.[3] By the time construction started in April 2009, the plan had changed to use REpower 2.0 MW wind turbines instead, with 80m towers.[4] At the time of construction, Hoosier was only the third wind farm in the United States to use REpower wind turbines, after Goodnoe Hills Wind Farm in Goldendale, Washington, and Shiloh Wind Farm Phase II in Birds Landing, California (also constructed by enXco and Mortenson).[4] Construction took six months.[1]

The groundbreaking ceremony on April 17, 2009, included Indiana Lt. Governor Becky Skillman and other government and industry officials.[5]

Environmental impact

IPL expects Hoosier to generate enough power for 29,000 homes and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 348,000 tons per year.[1] This is equivalent to the annual emissions from 58,000 cars.[1]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Indianapolis Power & Light Co. - Wind Farm . . 2010-03-14 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100926143510/http://iplpower.com/ipl/index?page=IPLGeneral&Menu=06000000&DocID=020391b5340c01202b6b0944004a6d . 2010-09-26 .
  2. Web site: U.S. Wind Energy Projects - Indiana . 2009-12-31 . 2010-03-12 . . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100918151714/http://awea.org/projects/Projects.aspx?s=Indiana . September 18, 2010 .
  3. Web site: IPL Announces Hoosier Wind Project . Inside Indiana Business . 2010-03-14 . 2008-04-24 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080920150600/http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/newsitem.asp?id=29035 . 2008-09-20 .
  4. Web site: Construction to Begin on Another Indiana Wind Project . Inside Indiana Business . 2010-03-14 . 2009-04-17 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120229133336/http://www.insideindianabusiness.com/newsitem.asp?ID=35116 . 2012-02-29.
  5. Web site: April Ground Breaking Scheduled for Hoosier Wind Park . 2009-02-16 . Mortenson Construction . 2010-03-14.