bp’s Wind Farm Upgrade Boosts Renewable Energy Production

Bp has just completed a major technology upgrade at its Fowler Ridge 1 wind farm in northwest Indiana. The upgrade will allow the site to produce more power, more efficiently, and with greater reliability. The new Vestas turbines are expected to produce up to 40% more energy, generating an average of 314,000 kilowatt-hours each year. This is enough renewable electricity to potentially power around 27,000 homes. The new technology produces power more efficiently at lower wind speeds, creating more electricity from available wind resource.

Orlando Alvarez, chairman and president of bp America, said, “This project is a substantial upgrade for the wind farm and another investment in bp’s low-carbon energy future. It shows bp’s strategy in action – contributing to a more secure, affordable, and lower carbon energy mix while pursuing our net zero ambition.” The project involved upgrading 40 turbines, including the installation of 120 individual blades and 40 new nacelles, which house power generation equipment and transformers atop the wind towers. bp’s capital investment was around $100 million, meeting the company’s expected returns for renewables.

Ramit Bajaj, senior vice president of construction & operations for Vestas North America, expressed excitement about the partnership with bp, saying, “Repowering wind projects offers an optimal solution for ageing fleets by increasing the annual energy production and expanding the lifespan of a project – a critical component of the clean energy transition.”

In addition to the technology upgrade, bp plans to recycle the decommissioned blades, keeping up to 3.3 million pounds of material from ending up in landfills. The decommissioned blades are planned to be shredded and blended with raw materials to make cement products.

bp’s renewables & power business sees onshore wind as critical, along with bioenergy, convenience, electric-vehicle charging, and hydrogen. The company’s ambition is to become a net zero company by 2050 or sooner, and to help the world get to net zero. bp has a larger economic footprint in the United States than anywhere else in the world, investing more than $145 billion since 2005 and supporting more than 275,000 jobs.

For more information on bp in the US, visit www.bp.com/us.