Siemens to produce wind turbines for western Kansas wind farm

"Duke Energy has entered into a wind energy supply agreement with Siemens for their Siemens 2.3-108 wind turbines," said Greg Efthimiou, of Duke Energy Corporate Communications. "We’re buying 57 wind turbines of them, each capable of producing 2.3 megawatts of clean electricity."

The North Carolina-based energy corporation is building the 131-megawatt wind power farm in Gray County starting this fall, with the facility operational by 2012. Kansas City Power & Light has contracted to purchase all the electricity from the project.

The wind farm will be located on 16,000 acres of leased farmland north of Cimarron, mostly west of K-23. CPV Renewable Energy Company originally had the power-purchase agreement with KCPL, but sold the contract to Duke Energy.

The company had not yet made a determination on which turbines it would use when it announced its purchase of Cimarron II in July.

"I do know the nacelles will be made at the Hutchinson facility," Efthimiou said Friday. "That was a selling point for us to go with Siemens."

Duke Energy previously announced in May it was building a 168-megawatt wind farm in Ford County using the 2.3 MW wind turbines produced in Hutchinson. The company will sell electricity from the Ironwood Windpower farm to Westar Energy.

www.duke-energy.com