One of World's Largest Wind Farms Starts Up in Oregon

The Shepherds Flat wind farm, one of the largest in the world, is now operating in Oregon.
Credit: Energy Department

Caithness Energy announced on September 22 that its Shepherds Flat Wind Farm in Oregon—one of the largest in the world—is now operational and generating up to 845 megawatts of electricity. The Energy Department supported the project with a $1.3 billion partial loan guarantee through the Recovery Act in 2010. The company said the project in the northeastern part of the state will generate enough electricity to power 235,000 U.S. homes.

Sponsored by Caithness and General Electric (GE) Energy Financial Services, the project consists of 338 GE 2.5xl turbines, which are being deployed for the first time in North America. The project's output is contracted through 20-year power purchase agreements with Southern California Edison. The project will eliminate nearly1,216,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year, an amount equivalent to the annual greenhouse gas emissions from more than 212,000 passenger vehicles. See the Caithness press release and the October 13, 2010 edition of the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy newsletter.

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