Iberdrola Renewables says it has begun advanced development of its 75.9 MW Wild Meadows Wind Farm, located on leased, privately owned land in the towns of Alexandria and Danbury, N.H.
Environmental assessment studies and surveys have been largely completed, and Iberdrola expects to file an application with the New Hampshire Site Evaluation Committee in the coming months. Wild Meadows could become Iberdrola Renewables' third wind farm in the state, after Lempster (24 MW) and Groton (48 MW), currently in operation.
According to Iberdrola, the wind farm represents a potential $150 million investment in the New Hampshire economy and could provide up to 300 jobs during construction. The decision to develop this project comes after the execution of a 15-year, fixed-price power purchase agreement with a group of four Massachusetts utilities, recently filed with the State of Massachusetts' Department of Public Utilities for approval.
The utilities – National Grid, Northeast Utilities, and Unitil Corp. – are seeking to buy 565 MW of electricity from six wind farms in Maine and New Hampshire from several developers, including Iberdrola. The company says the competitive bid process resulted in average prices below the cost of most conventional sources.
