(Source: Datamonitor)
Portland General Electric has announced that the first turbines erected for phase two of its Biglow Canyon wind farm in Sherman, Oregon have begun generating electricity and are supplying power to the Pacific Northwest's electricity grid.
Phase-one of Biglow Canyon was completed in 2007, with 76 turbines and an installed capacity of 125MW of electricity. Trucks laden with wind-turbine parts for the second phase began rolling into Biglow in mid-April 2009. A total of 65 new turbines are scheduled for completion in spring and summer 2009, with about 10 truckloads of parts delivered per wind turbine. Currently 12 turbines are generating power.
Each of the new turbines will be capable of generating up to 2.3MW, bringing Biglow Canyon's combined installed capacity to nearly 275MW by the end of 2009. A third phase with another 76 turbines is slated for commercial operation in 2010, which will bring the wind farm to a combined installed capacity of 450MW.
Given the variability of wind power, the plant is expected to produce an average of around 150MW, enough to power the homes of about 125,000 average Portland General Electric (PGE) residential customers. The Biglow Canyon project was developed by Orion Energy. It is being built by PGE, which will also own and operate it.
Jim Piro, president and CEO of PGE, said: "This major capital investment is moving forward on time and on budget. Our customers place a high priority on renewable power, and Biglow Canyon is an important step toward helping PGE meets Oregon's Renewable Energy Standard."
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