Tracy EDA gets update on future of 400-megawatt Plum Creek Wind Farm
By Per Peterson
Sometime in the next two to three years, the rural landscape south and east of Tracy will have a new look.
While there is no set time when construction will begin on the Plum Creek Wind Farm, the ball is rolling on a project that will affect multiple counties and will have an economic impact on numerous towns in those counties, including Tracy.
The wind farm will produce 400 megawatts of energy; turbine models range from those that produce anywhere from 2.8 to 5.6 megawatts.
“When you look at the Buffalo Ridge, a lot of those turbines today on the larger side are 2 megawatts, so we’re looking at 2.8 to 5.6,” said Jordan Burmeister of Geronimo Energy, which is based out of Edina and develops alternative energy farms in both solar and wind. “The technology has advanced. We’re kind of in the next stage of turbine models.”
The turbines won’t look any different than those seen on the Buffalo Ridge, except they will be larger. The blades will be longer, meaning fewer turbines are going to be needed to produce the amount of energy desired. The standard height of a turbine is about 265 feet to the hub; turbines on the Plum Creek Wind Farm will be about 300 feet to the hub, plus the blades, which run 200-plus feet.
See this week’s Headlight Herald for more on this article.