Enel Green Power Starts Construction Of Two New Wind Farms In The U.S

• The projects are the 66 MW Whitney Hill in Illinois and the 236.5 MW White Cloud in Missouri
• Enel Green Power now has four renewable projects under construction in the US for around 1,250 MW of new capacity

Boston, MA (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) - Enel, through its US renewables company Enel Green Power North America, Inc., has started construction of two new wind farms in the US totalling around 300 MW of new renewable capacity. These new wind facilities, together with the 450 MW High Lonesome wind project and the 497 MW¹ Roadrunner solar project, both being built in Upton County, Texas, bring the company’s total renewable capacity under construction in the country to around 1,250 MW.

“Today’s announcement reinforces our commitment to continued growth throughout the country,” said Georgios Papadimitriou, Head of Enel Green Power North America. “These projects will enable us to further capitalize on the abundant wind resource in the central US as we continue to expand our footprint in this region and increase the geographical diversification of our portfolio.”

The 66 MW Whitney Hill wind project is located in Logan County, Illinois, adjacent to the company’s existing 185 MW HillTopper wind farm that began commercial operation in December 2018. Whitney Hill is expected to begin operations by the end of 2019, generating around 246 GWh annually, equivalent to approximately 167,000 tons of CO2 emissions avoided each year. Both the Whitney Hill and HillTopper wind projects were developed by Swift Current Energy.

The 236.5 MW White Cloud wind project is located in Nodaway County, Missouri. Once operational, expected by the second half of 2020, the project will be able to generate around 950 GWh annually, avoiding the emission of approximately 643,000 tons of CO₂ per year. White Cloud will be Enel Green Power’s second wind farm in the state, as the company already operates the 300 MW Rock Creek wind farm in Atchison County, Missouri, which began operations in 2017.

Enel Green Power North America will use innovative tools and techniques to build both wind farms, such as construction machinery equipped with active safety systems, smart tracking of turbine components, advanced digital platforms and on tablet software solutions to monitor and remotely support site activities as well as plant commissioning. These processes and tools will enable swifter, more accurate and reliable data collection, improving the quality of construction and facilitating communication between on-site and off-site teams.

Enel Green Power North America, part of Enel Green Power, is a leading owner and operator of renewable energy plants in North America with projects operating and under development in 24 US states and two Canadian provinces. In North America, the company operates around 100 plants with a managed capacity of approximately 5.1 GW powered by hydropower, wind, geothermal and solar energy. In 2017, the company was the fastest growing renewable energy company in the US, bringing approximately 1.2 GW of capacity online.

Enel Green Power is the Enel Group’s global business line dedicated to the development and operation of renewables across the world, with a presence in Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa and Oceania. Enel Green Power is a global leader in the green energy sector with a managed capacity of more than 43 GW across a generation mix that includes wind, solar, geothermal and hydropower, and is at the forefront of integrating innovative technologies into renewable power plants.

¹ DC capacity.