First North Central Wind Project Begins Commercial Operation

American Electric Power’s 199-megawatt (MW) Sundance Wind Energy Center in north central Oklahoma has begun commercial operation. Located in Woods County, Sundance is one of three wind projects that compose the North Central Energy Facilities, which will provide 1,485 MW of clean energy to customers of AEP’s Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO) and Southwestern Electric Power Company (SWEPCO) subsidiaries.

Invenergy is developing the North Central Energy Facilities, and PSO and SWEPCO will assume ownership of each of the three wind projects following their commercial operation.

The other facilities, Maverick (287 MW) and Traverse (999 MW), are expected to begin operating later this year and in early 2022, respectively. In total, the projects will generate enough energy to power 440,000 homes.

“The completion of Sundance is a milestone for AEP and our customers as we continue to build a clean energy future,” said Nicholas K. Akins, AEP chairman, president and chief executive officer. “North Central will ensure we can provide clean, reliable energy to our customers in Arkansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma, while also saving them an estimated $3 billion in electricity costs over the next 30 years. We continue to transform AEP’s generation fleet with investments in new wind and solar and modernize the grid to support the integration of more renewable resources and new technologies.”

The combined North Central wind projects represent a $2 billion investment in the U.S. economy through jobs in manufacturing, construction, operations and maintenance, in addition to generating property tax revenue and lease payments for landowners.

American Electric Power, based in Columbus, Ohio, is focused on building a smarter energy infrastructure and delivering new technologies and custom energy solutions to our customers. AEP’s approximately 16,800 employees operate and maintain the nation’s largest electricity transmission system and more than 223,000 miles of distribution lines to efficiently deliver safe, reliable power to nearly 5.5 million regulated customers in 11 states.

AEP also is one of the nation’s largest electricity producers with approximately 30,000 megawatts of diverse generating capacity, including more than 5,500 megawatts of renewable energy. AEP’s family of companies includes utilities AEP Ohio, AEP Texas, Appalachian Power (in Virginia and West Virginia), AEP Appalachian Power (in Tennessee), Indiana Michigan Power, Kentucky Power, Public Service Company of Oklahoma, and Southwestern Electric Power Company (in Arkansas, Louisiana, east Texas and the Texas Panhandle). AEP also owns AEP Energy, AEP Energy Partners, AEP OnSite Partners, and AEP Renewables, which provide innovative competitive energy solutions nationwide. For more information, visit aep.com.

SOURCE American Electric Power