Michigan-based Consumers Energy’s parent company has become a majority owner of Aviator Wind, a 525-megawatt wind energy farm in central Texas. The project will create electrical power for Facebook and McDonald’s.
CMS Energy purchased 51% ownership in Aviator Wind, a 525-megawatt wind energy farm in central Texas, according to a Thursday, July 30 news release. Aviator Wind will be operated by CMS Enterprises, a subsidiary of CMS Energy that develops, owns and operates utility-scale renewable energy facilities, officials said according to a report by Michigan Alive.
The project will start operations by fall 2020, officials said, adding that the 200 megawatts in wind energy generated for Facebook will address the social media company’s entire sustainable energy goal for the year. The wind energy should also address its goal to reduce Facebook’s greenhouse gas emissions by 75%, the company said.
The energy will reduce restaurant and office greenhouse gas emissions by 36% in the next 10 years, McDonald’s officials said.
“Through Aviator Wind, we’re proud to continue the drive toward sustainable energy and help two of the nation’s largest organizations meet their aggressive renewable goals,” Richard Mukhtar, CMS Enterprises president, said in a statement.
CMS Enterprises purchased the project’s majority stake from funds managed by Ares Management Corporation’s Infrastructure and Power strategy, which constructed and managed the project, according to the news release. Japan-based Kansai Electric Power is the project’s other major partner.
The publicly traded energy company now owns and operates 11 independent power plants and more than 1,800 megawatts of generation nationwide including Aviator Wind, officials said.
Source: Michigan Alive