Siemens has been awarded an order from Westar Energy Inc. for 122 wind turbines for the Western Plains Wind Farm, located near Spearville, Kan., in Ford County.
Westar, a Kansas-based utility, recently announced it was teaming up with developer Infinity Wind Power and choosing Siemens towers for the 280 MW project.
The wind farm will feature Siemens’ SWT-2.3-108 turbines, each with a power rating of 2.3 MW and a 53-meter blade. The company is scheduled to begin installation early this summer, and the start of operations is expected by early 2017. Siemens’ service and maintenance will include the company’s remote monitoring and diagnostics.
The blades for this project will be manufactured at the Siemens blade facility in Fort Madison, Iowa, and the nacelles will be assembled at the Siemens facility in Hutchinson, Kan.
“Wind power is becoming an increasingly important part of the U.S. energy mix,” states Thomas Richterich, CEO of onshore wind at Siemens’ wind power and renewables division. “We are looking forward to working with Westar Energy on this large and important project. Continued technological innovation to drive down cost, along with recent congressional action providing long-term certainty for renewable energy, sets the stage for continued wind power growth in America.”
