After the company launched its wind expansion plan in the Upper Midwest, Xcel Energy now has announced plans to make the largest multi-state investment in wind capacity in the USA. The company has proposed 11 new wind farms in seven states, which would add a total of 3,380MW of new wind generation to its system.
The proposed plan significantly increases the amount of wind energy in the company’s energy mix by 2021, with wind fueling nearly 35 per cent of its total energy mix. Xcel Energy has proposed a combination of owned wind farms and power purchase agreements. Xcel Energy is using federal production tax credits to secure low wind energy prices as part of the company’s ‘steel for fuel’ strategy. Xcel Energy expects to see at least a 45 percent reduction companywide in carbon emissions from 2005 levels by 2021, if it is able to fully implement approved and proposed renewable energy plans.
