May 29 2008
WindConnect(R) has been awarded the balance of plant construction work for the second phase of the Locust Ridge Wind Farm, located in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. When complete, Locust Ridge II is expected to produce 102 MW of clean energy -- enough electricity to power nearly 30,000 homes.
The Locust Ridge II Wind Farm is comprised of 51 Gamesa G-83, 2.0-MW wind turbine generators (WTG). WindConnect is providing construction of the civil and electrical services for the site, including building the substation, collector system, and access roads to wind turbine locations; upgrading and improving existing mine roads; and constructing crane pads, crane paths, wind turbine erection, tower foundations, and associated civil infrastructure. The wind farm will be operational by December 2008.
The Locust Ridge II Wind Farm is owned by Iberdrola Renewable Energies USA, a division of the Madrid, Spain-based utility. Iberdrola also owns neighboring Locust Ridge I, which was constructed by WindConnect in 2005-2006, and represents Iberdrola's first wind project in the U.S. The combined Locust Ridge I and II Wind Farms will deliver 128 MW to the PPL Corporation system. Approximately 10 percent of the energy PPL markets come from renewable sources like wind power.
"WindConnect is very pleased to have been selected for this important project and to continue our outstanding working relationship with Iberdrola," stated WindConnect site project manager Mark Young.
With the projects contracted for 2008, WindConnect will have participated in the design and construction of over 3,000 MW of wind energy facilities across the U.S., which is enough electricity to power more than 800,000 homes and offset the equivalent of over 7.3 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere.