CleanPowerSF secures its largest wind development
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission’s (SFPUC) community choice energy programme, CleanPowerSF, has secured its largest-ever single source of wind power through a new power purchase agreement with Scout Clean Energy for electricity produced by a new wind project in Merced County.
Gonzaga Ridge will provide 147.5 MW of clean wind energy as well as 50 MW of reliable energy storage for CleanPowerSF’s 385 000 customers in San Francisco.
Developed by Colorado-based Scout Clean Energy, Gonzaga Ridge will be the largest single source of wind energy in CleanPowerSF’s power supply. It will generate enough electricity annually to power approximately 120 000 average San Francisco homes. Additionally, the 50 MW, 4 hour battery energy storage system will store energy produced during the day for use in the evening, when power from the grid is costlier and more reliant on natural gas. The project is anticipated to come online in May 2026.
“Thanks to our investment in Gonzaga Ridge, we will be nearly doubling the amount of clean wind energy for our CleanPowerSF customers,” said SFPUC General Manager Dennis Herrera. “The SFPUC has been a clean energy provider for 100 years, and we are continuing to expand our renewable energy portfolio to supply San Francisco with clean, affordable, and reliable power. We’re helping to make the grid more resilient in the face of climate change, accelerate California’s transition from fossil fuel power to more renewable energy, and create good jobs.”
The Gonzaga Ridge project is a redevelopment of an existing wind farm at the same site in Pacheco Park. The project is expected to offset approximately 593 000 t of CO2 and create 200 jobs during the project’s development and construction. In addition, all 378 t of turbine blades from the decommissioned site will avoid landfills and be recycled in a process that will produce 360 000 pounds concrete additives.
“We’re proud to help fulfil the impressive ambition of the SFPUC as they continue to establish the CleanPowerSF programme as a model of successfully delivering clean energy to their community,” added Michael Rucker, Founder and CEO of Scout Clean Energy, a portfolio company managed by Brookfield Asset Management. “Gonzaga Ridge is a wonderfully unique project, and we’re excited to see it become an energy option for San Francisco residents.”
Including Gonzaga Ridge, CleanPowerSF has now secured contracts to purchase energy from more than 600 MW of new solar, wind and geothermal projects. This is enough energy to power more than 500 000 average San Francisco homes. Additionally, CleanPowerSF energy storage contracts now total over 300 MW.
As of 2024, CleanPowerSF’s energy portfolio is more than 95% clean and renewable. Over the past eight years, CleanPowerSF has helped San Francisco reduce greenhouse gas emissions from electricity use by 93% from 1990 levels.
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Read the article online at: https://www.energyglobal.com/wind/24102024/cleanpowersf-secures-its-largest-wind-development/
