SAN JOSE, Calif. — Google Inc. is investing $55
million in a project to build wind turbines in Southern California’s
Tehachapi Mountains, the Mountain View, Calif., Internet company
announced Tuesday.
According to a post on the Google Green blog,
developer Terra-Gen Power is constructing the Alta Wind Energy Center in
phases. The project eventually will generate 1,500 megawatts of power,
or enough energy for 450,000 homes, according to the post.
Banking giant Citigroup Inc. also has provided $55
million in financing for the project, which currently has the capacity
to provide 720 megawatts of power to utility Southern California Edison.
“While Google won’t be purchasing the electricity
from this project,” Rick Needham, Google’s director of green business
operations wrote in the blog post, the wind turbines “will help
California meet its ambitious renewable portfolio standard of 33 percent
clean power by 2020. The whole site will boost California’s wind
generation by 30 percent.”
According to the post, Google and Citi are purchasing one of the project phases, then leasing it back to Terra-Gen.
“We are delighted to have Citi and Google as
important investors and welcome their participation in the Alta Wind
Energy Center,” Terra-Gen Power CEO Jim Pagano said in a news release.
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