Nobles 2 Power Partners has signed a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Minnesota Power, a utility division of ALLETE Inc., to deliver 250 MW of energy from a wind project in southwest Minnesota.
Nobles 2 Power Partners – which was formed to build, own and operate the project – is an affiliate of independent energy company Tenaska, based in Omaha, Neb. The Nobles 2 project, currently in advanced development, is located near Wilmont in Nobles County.
The wind farm will interconnect to the Midcontinent Independent System Operator regional transmission system. Construction is expected to begin in the second half of 2018, and the project is expected to be operational in December 2019.
The Nobles 2 project will also complement Minnesota Power’s EnergyForward strategy, which has the company on pace to deliver 44% of its energy from renewable sources by 2025, reduce carbon emissions by 40% by 2030 and exceed the state of Minnesota’s renewable energy goals.
“Capturing this competitive wind resource will strengthen Minnesota Power’s growing renewable portfolio and add geographic diversity to our wind sector,” comments Julie Pierce, Minnesota Power’s vice president of strategy and planning. “Building this new relationship and a broader renewable energy mix will benefit Minnesota Power customers by adding more safe, clean and reliable power.”
The project is part of a wind development portfolio that Tenaska acquired last fall from Minneapolis-based developer PRC Wind, which is providing development support services for the project.
The facility will consist of up to 125 wind turbines, which are expected to be supplied by Vestas (along with maintenance services).
