PPA deals for 3.5 GW of US wind power struck in Q1 - AWEA

US utility and non-utility companies signed the record 3,500 MW of long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) for wind power in the first quarter of 2018, shows a new report by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).

The record-high quarterly volume, since AWEA started tracking such deals in 2013, was achieved due to the low cost of wind power, which has dropped by two-thirds since 2009, and stable energy prices. At present, wind is the most cost-effective source of new electricity in regions like the Great Plains and Texas, the trade association said.

Adobe (NASDAQ:ADBE), AT&T (NYSE:T) and Nestle (VTX:NESN) were among the companies that signed their first wind PPAs in the quarter, while Bloomberg, Facebook (NASDAQ:FB), Nike (NYSE:NKE) and T-Mobile (NASDAQ:TMUS) became repeat customers.

“Our industry is consistently growing the wind project pipeline as leading companies, including utilities and brands like AT&T and Nestle, keep placing orders,” said AWEA’s CEO Tom Kiernan. He added that a record 105,500 people are currently employed in the US wind industry.

According to AWEA’s US Wind Industry First Quarter 2018 Market Report, a total of 5,523 MW of new wind project announcements have been made during the three months, bringing the combined under-construction and advanced development project capacity of the country to 33,449 MW. More specifically, construction was launched on 1,366 MW of projects and some 4,158 MW entered advanced stages of development.

In terms of commissioned capacity, the US brought online seven wind parks totalling 406 MW in January-March. Its cumulative installed wind power capacity at the end of the quarter came at 89,379 MW.

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