Alabama Power has signed 20-year contracts with two Midwestern wind energy projects, expected to yield 404 megawatts of electricity — with some of the power blowing in as soon as December.
How much is 404 megawatts? Bloomberg Businessweek quotes these comparisons provided by Alabama Power spokesman Ike Piggott: almost as much as the utility’s four dams on the Tallapoosa River, about a fourth as much as the Farley nuclear plant or more than 3 percent of Alabama Power customers’ total yearly energy use.
Alabama Power says the two contracts represent some of the largest wind farm agreements for any Southeast utility. The power and the renewable energy credits can be used or sold to others, the utility says, adding “In either case, the contracts are expected to provide net savings to Alabama Power ratepayers.”
Nedra Bloom
