SAN ANTONIO, Texas, Jan. 14, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- After closing out a year with significant investments in low-emission generation, CPS Energy is kicking off 2013 with 200 megawatts (MW) of new wind power. Los Vientos I, a coastal windfarm, is now online and supplying power to Greater San Antonio and the state's electric grid.
CPS Energy executed a 25-year power purchase agreement with Duke Energy for the power from Los Vientos I, raising its total wind-energy capacity to 1,059 MW. The partnership will bring significant educational investments to the San Antonio area while helping CPS Energy shield its customers from environmental regulatory risks by investing in clean energy and innovative technologies, essential components of CPS Energy's New Energy Economy.
"Coastal wind has the potential to provide us with electric power during summer afternoon hours when energy demand is highest," said Cris Eugster, executive vice president and chief strategy and technology officer. "It's a clean generation source for our customers at a locked-in, competitive price, and complements our investments last year in natural gas and solar."
"We are pleased to again be providing emissions-free power to CPS Energy, a utility widely recognized for its dedication to affordable renewables and clean technologies," said Duke Energy Renewables President Greg Wolf. "The 200 MW Los Vientos I Windpower Project significantly contributes to CPS's top ranking in wind energy capacity among the nation's municipally-owned utilities."
In addition to Los Vientos, CPS Energy purchases the power generated at Duke Energy Renewables' Blue Wing Solar Power Project in San Antonio.
Los Vientos is located on 30,000 acres of land in Willacy County, 120 miles south of Corpus Christi and 20 miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico. With 87 Siemens wind turbines, rated at 2.3 MW each, the facility will generate enough electricity for nearly 40,000 area homes. Most turbines are rated at 1 MW.
Wind energy has proven to be beneficial locally and statewide. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) cited at least four new wind power records in 2012, with the most recent occurring on Christmas Day as 8,638 MW of power was generated. The output represented nearly one-fourth of system load in ERCOT at the time and was enough to power anywhere from 1.7 to 4.3 million homes.
CPS Energy is the nation's largest municipally owned natural gas and electric utility, providing service to approximately 728,000 electric and 328,000 natural gas customers in the Greater San Antonio area. The utility offers the lowest rates among the top 10 largest U.S. cities, while ranking number 1 in wind-energy capacity among municipally owned utilities and number 1 in Texas for solar generation. For more information, visit cpsenergy.com.
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