Wind energy is an integral part of California’s electricity portfolio. It is needed to help meet the state’s Renewables Portfolio Standard which is one of California’s key programs for advancing renewable energy.
Wind energy is currently the largest source of renewable energy in California, making up about 40 percent of the state’s renewable energy capacity. Northern California has some of the strongest offshore winds in the United States, with great potential to reliably produce clean energy.
1) Eolus North America (La Jolla, California)
Since 1990, Eolus North America, Inc. is a renewable energy developer headquartered in La Jolla, California. It is the subsidiary of Sweden-based Eolus Vind AB. Eolus North America‘s services include utility-scale development and asset management of solar, energy storage and wind projects.
So far, it has already installed over 653 wind turbines in the Nordics. In July 2021, Eolus developed and constructed a 46.5MW wind farm in the Tehachapi region of California.
2) Terra-Gen (NYC, New York)
Established in 2007, Terra-Gen is a renewable energy company focused on developing, owning, and operating utility-scale wind, geothermal, and solar generation. Its operating portfolio is one of the largest renewable businesses in the United States.
The company owns 976 MWs of wind, geothermal and solar generating capacity across 25 renewable power facilities in the United States with a regional focus on California. Terra-Gen developed the Coachella Hills wind farm in Palm Springs, California with a capacity of 61 MW.
3) Avangrid Renewables (Portland, Oregon)
Subsidiary of Avangrid, Avangrid Renewables plays a leading role in the growing offshore wind industry in the United States. It is the third largest wind generator in the U.S. with nearly 70 operational wind and solar facilities in 22 states with a capacity of over 7,300MW.
In California, Avangrid Renewables is building an onshore 131MW Tule wind farm. It is located in McCain Valley in San Diego County and will be able to power 40,000 Southern Californian households.
Image Source: Luo Lei via Unsplash (28.06.2022)
