WEC Energy Group to buy 80% stake in Illinois wind farm for $345 million
WASHINGTON -
WEC Energy Group, the parent company of We Energies, is buying an 80% stake in a wind farm in McLean County, Illinois, for $345 million.
The wind farm, known as the Blooming Grove Wind Farm, is being developed by Invenergy, a company based in Chicago that develops wind, solar and other power projects. WEC Energy has invested in several wind farms developed by Invenergy.
With the agreement announced Monday, WEC Energy will have invested more than $1.2 billion in wind farms in the Midwest. The power from the wind farms is sold to other utilities or companies, and the projects are separate from the investments made by WEC Energy's regulated utilities, such as We Energies, in wind power.
The project, which will consist of 94 wind turbines from General Electric, is expected to be completed this year and will have a capacity of 250 megawatts, WEC said in a news release.
Affiliates of two undisclosed multinational companies have contracted to take all of the wind farm's output.
The investment is expected to be eligible for 100% bonus depreciation and the tax credits available for wind projects, WEC Energy said.
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Power outage update: 252,596 remain without electricity Wednesday
EASTERN CAROLINA - Power is slowly being restored to Eastern Carolina residents after Hurricane Florence made landfall near Wilmington on Friday, September 15.
On Monday, more than half a million people remained without power across the state.
As of Wednesday morning at 1am, the Dept. of Public Safety reports 252,596 total power outages in North Carolina.
More than half of those customers are in Eastern Carolina.
More than 32,000 customers are without power in Carteret County and roughly 21,000 are without power in Onslow County.
In Craven County, roughly 15,000 people remain without power Wednesday morning.
Many of the state's outages are effecting the Wilmington area,…