Through its subsidiary Enel Green Power North America, Enel Green Power has launched another renewable energy project in the United States: in this case, it is the construction of a 299 MW wind farm in North Dakota. The infrastructure, which it should be fully operational by the end of 2020 and which will require an investment of approximately 450 million dollars, will bring the Italian group's wind and solar projects in the United States to a total capacity of over 1,5 GW.
The North Dakota plant is called Aurora and is supported by a new power supply agreement (PPA) which provides for the sale of the energy produced by a portion of the plant to local utility Basin Electric Power Cooperative, and which follows the virtual energy supply contract already signed earlier during the year with Gap Inc. In detail, the electricity supply contract with Basin Electric Power Cooperative, with a duration of 23 years, provides for the purchase of the energy fed into the grid from a 142 MW section of the Aurora wind farm.
In addition to Aurora, Basin Electric also purchases all 150 MW of electrical generation from EGPNA's Lindahl Wind Farm, also in North Dakota. As for the clothing company Gap, Enel Green Power North America will sell it the energy produced by a 90 MW section of the Aurora project, as part of a 12-year virtual electricity supply contract signed in August of this 'year. The energy purchased by Gap Inc. is enough to power more than 1.500 stores, equivalent to approximately 50% of the electricity needs of the more than 3.300 points of sale operated by Gap Inc. worldwide. Electricity production is expected to reach around 400 GWh per year, equivalent to avoid the emission of about 262 thousand tons of CO2 every year.
“The construction of Aurora – he comments Antonio Cammisecra, CEO of Enel Green Power – demonstrates Enel Green Power's strength as an integrated company capable of developing, constructing and operating plants in North America, expanding our presence in key regions and providing flexible solutions specifically designed to help commercial customers achieve their sustainability goals. Thanks to our expertise in the field of renewable energies and the positive long-term economic prospects for the sector, this project represents a further example of collaboration between companies and utilities, with the aim of exploiting renewable energy both for its sustainability and for its economic viability.”
