United States: Wind Energy Country

According to the American Wind Energy Association, in 2015 the USA installed 8,598 MW of wind power (+77% compared to 2014). Enel Green Power is at the forefront of the wind power rush: in Oklahoma, the US state with the second-highest installed capacity in 2015, EGP has put into service over 420 MW of capacity, more than any other competitor in the state.

Renewables have been in the news lately in the United States thanks to employment generated in the solar PV industry, which in 2015 created 210,000 new jobs, surpassing oil & gas for the first time in history. But solar PV is not the only clean source with record-breaking numbers and performances in the U.S.: wind power is also seeing real vertical growth.

Preliminary statistics released by the American Wind Energy Association(AWEA) show that the USA have installed 8,598 MW of wind power over the course of 2015, with a 77% increase compared to 2014, raising the country’s total installed capacity to 74 GW. Enel Green Power is at the forefront of the wind power rush.

Oklahoma ranks second among US states in wind power. In 2015, its new installed capacity amounted to 853 MW, half of which was made in Enel Green Power.

The Little Elk and Goodwell wind farms are the latest additions EGP’s portfolio in the United States. Their grid-connection at the end of last year enabled Enel Green Power North America to put into service – in 2015 alone – more than 420 MW of wind capacity in Oklahoma, more than any other operator in the state.

In Oklahoma EGP manages six wind farms, accounting for 40% of the company’s total capacity in North America. The energy they generate is enough to meet the annual needs of over 330,000 US households, avoiding the emission into the atmosphere of around two million tonnes of CO₂ per year. Additionally, EGP began the construction of the new Drift Sand wind farm at the start of 2016, bringing the number of wind-powered plants to seven.