Aspenall Energies (Delaware) LLC, a renewable energy developer based out of Minnesota, and the Municipal Energy Agency of Nebraska (MEAN) have announced the commercial operations of the 30 MW Kimball Wind Project.
The facility, which entered operations on June 29, is made up of 12 2.5 MW GE turbines with a 116-meter rotor diameter. Located outside of Kimball, Neb., the project is expected to supply enough annual energy to power approximately 11,000 homes.
Kimball Wind replaces a smaller, 10.5 MW facility, which was developed by MEAN and then decommissioned in 2017. MEAN has entered into a long-term power purchase agreement with Aspenall’s subsidiary, Kimball Wind LLC, for the purchase of all of the power produced by the new project. The wind farm will be maintained by Aspenall, GE and local resources.
“We are very excited about the addition of Kimball Wind to our portfolio of community-scale wind energy projects,” says Raoul Slavin, Aspenall’s managing director.
According to MEAN, the new facility is expected to generate over 125,000 MWh annually, representing nearly six times the amount of energy delivered by the original project.
In addition to delivering energy to the Nebraska electric grid, the Kimball wind facility will also provide tax revenue to the State of Nebraska, Kimball County and Kimball County schools.
“As rural communities continue to manage decreasing budgets, projects like the Kimball wind farm can provide a valuable stream of long-term tax revenue to support school and government services,” says Larry Engstrom, chairman of the Kimball County Commissioners.
Early-stage development of the project was undertaken by a local developer, Sandhills Energy, from which Aspenall purchased the project before major construction. New Generation Construction Inc. of Lincoln, Neb., served as the general contractor.
“We are excited to bring our first Nebraska project online,” says John Brown, Aspenall’s chief development officer, “and look forward to working with other regional developers to build more midsize wind and solar projects.”
