Business & Finance
Business and Finance
Business and Finance
Wed, January 14, 2009 enXco Announces Commissioning of 100.5 MW at the Grand Meadow Wind Project
ESCONDIDO, Calif.--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--enXco, an EDF Energies Nouvelles Company (PARIS: EEN), and Xcel Energy (NYSE: XEL) announced today that all 67 GE 1.5 turbines in the 100.5 megawatt Grand Meadow Wind Project have been commissioned as of December 31, 2008.
The project, developed by enXco Development Corporation and owned by Xcel Energy, was contracted in June 2007 with construction commencing in May 2008. enXco Service Corporation will provide operations and maintenance for the turbines and balance of plant equipment, as well as provide 24/7 remote monitoring and fault resets from their Operations Control Center in Chandler, Minnesota.
"The Grand Meadow Wind Project builds on our long-term relationship of 334 MW of previously developed wind projects under power purchase agreements, including the 205.5 Fenton Wind Project completed in 2007," said Tristan Grimbert, president & CEO of enXco. "The working relationship enXco has with Xcel Energy is outstanding and evidenced by the additional 351 MW we agreed to develop, build and sell to Xcel Energy during 2010 and 2011. Grand Meadow represents the first wind project built for Xcel Energy under a develop, build and sell agreement."
"Developing this renewable resource will both protect the environment while meeting our customers' growing needs for electricity," said Dave Sparby, president and CEO of Northern States Power Co.-Minnesota, an Xcel Energy company. "This facility represents a major milestone in our strategy to diversify our renewable efforts to include ownership along with traditional purchases and purchases from C-BED developers."
Xcel Energy, a pioneer in wind energy development in the Midwest, is the nation's No. 1 wind power provider, as ranked by the American Wind Energy Association. Ownership of Grand Meadow is important in ensuring the company's ability to comply with the state of Minnesota's aggressive Renewable Energy Standard, which requires Xcel Energy to add 2,600 megawatts of new wind resources to its system by 2020.
About enXco, an EDF Energies Nouvelles Company:
enXco ([ www.enxco.com ]) - an EDF Energies Nouvelles Company ([ www.edf-energies-nouvelles.com ]) develops, constructs, owns, operates and manages renewable energy projects throughout the United States. For more than two decades, we have been a leader in wind-energy focusing on large-scale wind projects. Today enXco's portfolio includes solar and biomass technologies, in an effort to help drive our nation's transition to a sustainable energy economy. enXco is a significant owner and developer of wind-energy installations in the United States, and is the leading third-party operations & maintenance provider for wind farms in North America.
About Xcel Energy:
Xcel Energy (NYSE: XEL) is a major U.S. electricity and natural gas company with regulated operations in eight Western and Midwestern states. Xcel Energy provides a comprehensive portfolio of energy-related products and services to 3.3 million electricity customers and 1.8 million natural gas customers through its regulated operating companies. Company headquarters are located in Minneapolis. More information is available at [ www.xcelenergy.com ].
