BP Wind Energy and NorthWestern Energy Welcome South Dakota Governor Rounds to First Wind Project in Hand County
August 05 2009 - 1:13PM
PR Newswire (US)
Project to be largest in world if built out to full capacity SIOUX
FALLS, S.D., Aug. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- BP Wind Energy and
NorthWestern Energy (NYSE:NWE) today welcomed South Dakota Governor
Michael Rounds at a wind turbine blade signing event to celebrate
the move into full construction of the Titan I Wind Farm in Hand
County, South Dakota. Governor Rounds, who was joined by other
state and local elected officials, landowners and community leaders
said: "Today marks an important step in delivering clean power from
a renewable resource, and that's a credit to innovative thinking
and planning by the partners in this project. South Dakota has
tremendous potential to become a leader in wind energy development,
and utilization of this abundant natural resource harbors the
potential of great economic promise for the state." Located on a
7500-acre site south of the town of Ree Heights, the Titan I Wind
Farm is 100% owned by BP Wind Energy with the energy sold to
NorthWestern Energy for use by its customers in South Dakota. Phase
I will utilize 10 Clipper C89 wind turbines each with a rated
capacity of 2.5 MW. The project will employ up to 175 workers
during peak construction and is expected to be in commercial
operation in the first quarter of 2010. The balance of the plant
contract has been awarded to Mortenson Construction. "BP's approach
to meeting America's future energy needs includes oil, natural gas
and significant investments in alternative energy such as wind
power, as this project demonstrates," says John Graham, president,
BP Wind Energy. "Large wind farms such as Titan are the long-term
future of the wind energy business but to deliver on this
opportunity, we have to address the transmission challenges and we
commend those who are actively working to enable South Dakota to
reach its full wind development potential," adds Graham. "We take
seriously our responsibilities to the environment and to our
customers," says Bob Rowe, president and CEO, NorthWestern Energy.
"This wind farm will provide approximately 5% of the total energy
supply used by our South Dakota customers. This is good both for
the environment and for the local economy. We're committed to
evaluating future options that will provide value to customers
while helping to grow this industry for the benefit of all South
Dakotans." The first phase of the wind farm will tie into an
existing above-ground 69 kV NorthWestern Energy transmission line.
When in full operation, the Titan I Wind Farm will generate enough
carbon-free electricity to power 7500 average American homes. Media
Inquiries: Tom Mueller, BP Press Office: 281-366-1236 Tom Glanzer,
NorthWestern Energy: 877-410-0154 About BP Wind Energy/BP America
BP Wind Energy is a wholly owned subsidiary of BP, one of the
world's leading energy companies. BP Wind Energy currently has
interests in six operating wind farms: the 400 MW Fowler Ridge I
project in Indiana; the 300.5 MW Cedar Creek project in Colorado;
the 100 MW Flat Ridge I project in Kansas; the 20 MW Edom Hills
project in California; and the 150 MW Sherbino I project and the 60
MW Silver Star I project, both in Texas. In the past month, the
company has announced it has moved into construction of Phase II of
the Fowler Ridge Wind Farm in Indiana which will have a generating
capacity of 200 MW and is expected to be in commercial operation in
the first quarter of 2010. BP America is the largest producer of
oil and gas in the United States and one of the nation's largest
energy investors. For more information, visit the company's Web
sites at http://www.bpalternativenergy.com/ and
http://www.bp.com/us. About NorthWestern Energy NorthWestern Energy
provides electricity and natural gas in the Upper Midwest and
Northwest, serving approximately 656,000 customers in Montana,
South Dakota and Nebraska. More information on NorthWestern Energy
is available on the Company's Web site at
http://www.northwesternenergy.com/. DATASOURCE: NorthWestern
Corporation CONTACT: Tom Mueller, BP Press Office, +1-281-366-1236,
or Tom Glanzer of NorthWestern Energy, +1-877-410-0154 Web Site:
http://www.northwesternenergy.com/
http://www.bpalternativenergy.com/ http://www.bp.com/us
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