Wind turbines begin operation today

November 23, 2012

 

The Northern Lights glow over a wind turbine in Riverton earlier this fall.

RIVERTON TWP. — The controversial Lake Winds Energy Park begins operations today. The 56 wind-generation turbines, located in Riverton and Summit townships, tower over the hilly landscape in the heart of Mason County’s fruit orchards.

Lake Winds is Consumers Energy’s first wind park and has a generating capacity of 100 megawatts.

“Consumers Energy thanks Mason County and area governmental officials in particular, for making today’s start-up possible,” Bill Schoenlein, manager of hydro and renewable generation for Consumers Energy, said in a Consumers Energy press release.

Consumers Energy is the largest supplier of renewable energy in Michigan. The utility is on track to meet a requirement in Michigan’s energy law that by 2015, 10 percent of the electricity it provides to its 1.8 million electric customers will come from renewable sources in the state.

“Completion of this project puts Consumers Energy on its way to meeting the 2015 requirement. The addition of Lake Winds to the company’s portfolio of renewable sources increases its renewable supply to 7 percent of retail sales. The completion of other projects under development will increase our renewable supply to 8 percent by the end of 2012,” said David Ronk, Consumers Energy’s director for transactions and resource planning.
Photo by Rob Alway

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