PacifiCorp seeks bids for 1.1 GW of fresh wind

US power utility firm PacifiCorp has issued a request for proposals (RfPs) that will enable it to add at least 1.1 GW of new wind power capacity by 2020.

As part of the competitive bidding round, launched last week, the utility will seek “the most cost effective way” to lift the number of its owned or contracted wind power serving customers in six states by about 35%. It noted that the exact capacity of the new wind power plants is not known and will depend on the response from the market.

The move is part of PacifiCorp’s Energy Vision 2020 initiative, which concerns six states, namely Oregon, Washington, California, Utah, Wyoming and Idaho. The USD-3.5-billion (EUR 3bn) expansion programme involves the construction of new wind parks and upgrade or repowering of existing facilities, as well as the construction of a 140-mile (225.3 km) high-voltage transmission line in Wyoming.

PacifiCorp will accept proposals for projects in Wyoming by October 17, while the bidding for schemes in other states will be open until October 24. Final decisions and signing agreements with developers is expected to take place by the middle of April 2018.

The US utility expects the additional wind farms to generate electricity equal to the annual consumption of about 400,000 average homes. “These new wind resources are a key part of the company’s plan to both meet customer energy needs and continue our cost-conscious transition to less carbon-intensive energy,” said Stefan Bird, president and CEO of Pacific Power, a unit of PacifiCorp.

(USD 1.0 = EUR 0.854)

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