DES MOINES, Iowa- Two new wind farms are going up in Adair County, southwest of
Des Moines. MidAmerican Energy says the Arbor Hill wind farm will have 125 wind turbines, the Orient wind farm project includes 150 wind turbines, with an option to add 100 more. The two new projects, will add to MidAmerican Energy’s three existing wind farms in Adair County: Adair, Morning Light and Rolling Hills.
The wind farms are part of 2,000 megawatt, $3.6 billion Wind XI project.
The turbines are expected to generate enough power for more than 230-thousand average Iowa homes. Crews are expected to start construction in June.
“This is another step forward for our Wind XI project,” Mike Fehr, MidAmerican Energy vice president of resource development, said. “Every wind farm we add gets us closer to achieving our 100 percent renewable energy vision.”
The company anticipates that renewable generation will equate to more than 90 percent of its customers’ annual retail electricity usage by 2020.