TULSA – The first of three new Oklahoma wind farms that will provide clean energy to Public Service Co. of Oklahoma (PSO) is now in service.
The 199-megawatt (MW) Sundance project is located northwest of Aline in Woods County and is part of the 1,485-MW North Central Energy Facilities (NCEF).
NCEF is a joint project with PSO’s Shreveport, La.-based sister company, Southwestern Electric Power Co. SWEPCO will receive 810 MW of the output and PSO customers will receive 675 MW of the electricity. PSO and SWEPCO are subsidiaries of American Electric Power.
PSO and SWEPCO plan to spend $2 billion to buy three wind farms situated across parts of seven Oklahoma counties (Alfalfa, Blaine, Custer, Garfield, Kingfisher, Major and Woods). The facilities are being developed by Invenergy.
Along with Sundance, the NCEF also includes the 287-MW Maverick, under construction southwest of Enid, and the 999-MW Traverse project under construction north of Weatherford. Maverick is scheduled to be in service later this year, Traverse in early 2022.
PSO’s investment in the projects will be $908 million, said Stan Whiteford, the company’s region communications manager.
PSO President and Chief Operating Officer Peggy Simmons calls the completion of Sundance a significant step in the company’s efforts to help ensure an affordable clean energy future.
Wind power already produces 22% of the energy PSO delivers to its customers, Whiteford said. When all three new wind farms go online, wind power will generate 34% of the energy PSO delivers, he said.
“Our customers tell us they support our efforts to include more renewable energy in our generation mix,”
Simmons said. “The completion of Sundance and the North Central project accomplishes that and adds a $2 billion investment in Oklahoma’s future while saving customers money.”
PSO is an electric utility company serving more than 562,000 customer accounts in eastern and southwestern Oklahoma; PSO provides electricity to more than three dozen cities and towns in southwest Oklahoma.
Based in Tulsa, PSO owns approximately 3,800 megawatts of generating capacity fueled primarily by natural gas. It also maintains and operates 22,000 miles of distribution lines and 3,700 miles of transmission lines.