The first several towers for the new 99-megawatt Elm Creek Wind Farm have been put up just southeast of Bergen and all 66 of the project's wind turbines are expected to be built and operational by the end of the year. Construction of the Elm Creek project, an expansion of the 100-megawatt Trimont Area Wind Farm built late in 2005, was announced July 12 at the Trimont Chocolate Festival by developer Iberdrola Renewables and electric utility Great River Energy.

The first several towers for the new 99-megawatt Elm Creek Wind Farm have been put up just southeast of Bergen and all 66 of the project's wind turbines are expected to be built and operational by the end of the year.

Construction of the Elm Creek project, an expansion of the 100-megawatt Trimont Area Wind Farm built late in 2005, was announced July 12 at the Trimont Chocolate Festival by developer Iberdrola Renewables and electric utility Great River Energy.

"Trimont has been such a success, we wanted to do another one as soon as possible," said Neal VonOhlen, chief manager of the Trimont Area Wind Farm and a local landowner.

The new wind farm will feature the same General Electric model of wind turbines as before - with a capacity to generate 1.5 megawatts of electricity - and will continue to reward landowners who have invested in the project, company officials said.

Those landowners will receive a share of revenues produced by the wind farm in addition to the easement payments they get for allowing the turbines to be built on their property.

"The wind projects are not only a good fit with agriculture in rural Minnesota, they also bring in business to our local hotels, restaurants and campgrounds," said Jackson County Commissioner Roger Ringkob.

The general public will benefit, too, when Jackson County, its schools and townships receive $350,000 to $400,000 every year in production tax revenues.

"In southern Minnesota, we are showing the rest of the nation what is possible in renewable energy development," said Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn. "With skyrocketing energy prices, it is imperative that we work together to ensure that our growing wind industry remains strong."

Iberdrola Renewables, formerly Oregon-based PPM Energy, developed and is building and operating the Elm Creek project for Great River Energy and its members, which includes Federated Rural Electric and Nobles Cooperative Electric.

The company first constructed foundations for the turbines and allowed them to cure. Tower sections are currently being assembled, and later the enclosure that houses the controls and the blades will be added, according to Mark Rathbun, Great River Energy's renewable energy project leader.

"Iberdrola Renewables is delighted to again bring construction and operations jobs to this community," said Tim Seck, Iberdrola's director of development.

When finished, electricity from the Elm Creek Wind Farm is anticipated to be enough to power 29,000 homes annually and bring Great River Energy's wind power total to 300 megawatts.

"This puts us in a position to meet and exceed the Minnesota Renewable Energy Standard," Rathbun said.

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