Texas Adding to U.S.-Leading Renewable Portfolio with 200-MW RWE Wind Farm
A 200-MW onshore wind farm project is under construction in Texas, an installation that will add to the state’s U.S.-leading renewable energy portfolio.
RWE, a German multinational energy provider, on August 31 said the Montgomery Ranch Wind Farm is being built in Foard County. The company said it the project will increase RWE’s installed wind power generation capacity in Texas to 4.3 GW. Montgomery Ranch is part of an RWE global base of more than 200 onshore wind farms, along with 19 offshore wind power installations.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) earlier this year said Texas generated more electricity from renewable energy than any state, with its total more than doubling that of second-place California. The agency said Texas receives about one-quarter of its electricity from renewable resources, and said the state provides about 15% of total U.S. electricity generation from renewables.
RWE’s projects in Texas include the 240-MW Blackjack Creek and the 200-MW El Algodon Alto wind farms. The company on Thursday said it has a U.S. development platform of more than 24 GW of onshore wind, solar, and battery energy storage. It currently operates about 8 GW of U.S.-based renewable energy projects.
“Our Montgomery Ranch Wind Farm in Texas is a concrete example of how we are following through on our strong project pipeline to expand renewables across the country,” Mark Noyes, CEO of RWE Clean Energy, told POWER. “This project, along with many others to come, will add much-needed capacity and green the U.S. power grid as we strive for a net zero future.”
‘Growing Green’ Program
The company has said the U.S. is a key market in RWE’s “Growing Green” program, as the group expands its renewable energy business in an effort to achieve net-zero carbon emissions across its operations by 2040.
“Wind projects such as Montgomery Ranch contribute to a cleaner, stronger economy and help create a more resilient energy infrastructure in Texas,” said Noyes, whose group is a subsidiary of RWE AG. “Last summer ERCOT set 11 new demand records and we are on track to meet, if not exceed, that record this summer. With our planned buildout of renewable resources in Texas, we are contributing to a more diverse grid that is flexible and responsive to meet future energy demands in the Lone Star State.”
RWE said the Montgomery Ranch project will create as many as 300 jobs during its construction. The installation will feature 45 Vestas 4.5-MW turbines.
—Darrell Proctor is a senior associate editor for POWER (@POWERmagazine).