"Peyton Creek is our 24th wind project in North America. That underlines the importance of North America as a focus market for RWE. Our long-term operation of this wind farm will deliver clean, low-cost energy to South Texas. We appreciate the support of the local community for the project.”
Anja-Isabel Dotzenrath, CEO RWE Renewables
Peyton Creek Wind Farm, a 151 megawatt (MW) onshore facility located in Matagorda County, Texas, has achieved commercial operation. The project is powered by 48 Nordex 3.15 MW turbines and can generate enough electricity to power more than 45,000 homes. With the addition of Peyton Creek, RWE will operate a total installed wind generating capacity of more than 4,000 MW in the U.S. (RWE’s pro rata share is about 3,400 MW).
“The completion of this project is an important statement of our intent to grow our portfolio of renewables projects,” said Anja-Isabel Dotzenrath, CEO of RWE Renewables. “With our experience and expertise, we are well-positioned to take advantage of changing dynamics in the renewable energy industry.”
North America is one of the focus markets of RWE, with a strong development pipeline in the renewables business. The installed capacity in the U.S. accounts for more than one third of the Group´s renewables capacity. As one of the largest renewables players worldwide RWE will provide an annual €1.5 billion in net capital expenditure to strengthen its position. Project partnerships have the potential to increase total investment to between €2 and €3 billion per annum.
Further onshore wind farms in the U.S. are currently under construction, among others: The Cranell Wind Farm, a 220 MW facility in Refugio County, and Big Raymond, a 440 MW facility in Willacy, Cameron and Hidalgo counties, are both located in Texas. The Boiling Springs Wind Farm is a 150 MW wind farm and RWE´s first project in Oklahoma.
The Peyton Creek project overcame its fair share of challenges including the impact of Tropical Storm Imelda in September 2019. Despite about 60 centimeters of rain falling during the storm, including about 40 centimeters in less than 24 hours, the construction team was able to continue on to completion.
“This was truly a team effort to bring the project together and successfully start commercial operation,” said Silvia Ortin, COO Onshore Wind and Solar PV Americas, RWE Renewables. “Even more impressive than overcoming the challenges they faced, our construction team has established a remarkable safety record, going 449 days without a recordable safety incident.”