SunEdison Inc. has closed financing and begun construction on one of its largest wind farms to date: the 300 MW South Plains II project, which is located in Floyd County, Texas.
Citi provided the construction loan facilities for the project, and BHE Renewables, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, in partnership with Citi, will invest in the tax equity.
‘Our company has been a leader in wind project development and ownership,’ says Tom Budler, president of BHE Wind, a division of BHE Renewables. ‘As we look for new ways to be involved in developing renewable generation, we see tremendous opportunity to move the industry forward through investment in the tax equity market.’
Mortenson Construction is building the wind farm, which will feature Vestas wind turbines.
‘We are delighted to be partnering with SunEdison on this wind farm and contributing to the growth of the renewable energy industry in Texas,’ says Tim Maag, Mortenson's Wind Energy Group vice president and general manager.
Hewlett-Packard plans to purchase 112 MW of the wind farm's capacity to power 100% of its Texas-based data centers as part of the company's sustainable cloud initiative. The remaining 188 MW capacity will be sold to an affiliate of Citi.
Construction is targeted for completion in 2016. The wind farm is on the Call Right Projects List for TerraForm Power Inc., which anticipates acquiring the project once complete. SunEdison Services will provide operations and maintenance.
‘The South Plains II wind power facility will have a positive economic impact for the people of Texas,’ comments Paul Gaynor, SunEdison's executive vice president of Americas and EMEA. ‘This is expected to become one of SunEdison's largest wind projects, creating about 300 construction jobs and ensuring that thousands of Texans have access to clean, cost-effective electricity.’
