Portland General Electric, NextEra to construct clean energy facility in Oregon

Portland General Electric Company and NextEra Energy Resources will join forces to construct a new clean energy facility in Eastern Oregon.

The facility — called the Wheatridge Renewable Energy Facility — will generate 300 megawatts of wind power, 50 megawatts of solar generation, and 30 megawatts of battery storage. It will be the first of this scale in North America to integrate these three technologies. The battery storage facility will be the largest in Oregon and the solar farm will be one of the largest in Oregon.

“We’re moving aggressively to integrate smart grid technologies and renewable energy to give customers affordable, clean, low-carbon energy,” Maria Pope, PGE president and CEO, said. “Wheatridge will be a model for integrating renewable generation and storage to cost-effectively reduce emissions while maintaining a reliable grid.”

PGE will own 100 megawatts of the wind project, while NextEra Energy Resources will own the balance of the project and sell its output to PGE under 30-year power purchase agreements. NextEra Energy will build and operate the combined facility. The split ownership will allow the two energy companies to share project risks and benefits.

With this new project, the company will produce more than 1,000 megawatts (one gigawatt) of wind energy from five wind farms in the Northwest. This is enough power to serve 340,000 homes.

“We’re pleased to work with Portland General Electric on the Wheatridge Renewable Energy Facility, an exciting opportunity to combine wind, solar and energy storage,” Armando Pimentel, president and CEO of NextEra Energy Resources, said. “This venture will allow PGE’s customers to benefit from more renewable energy over more hours of the day and create substantial economic value for the communities that host this project, many of whom stand to benefit for years to come.”

The wind farm will be located near Lexington in Morrow County. Power from the facility will be generated by 120 wind turbines manufactured by GE Renewable Energy, Inc. The equipment for the solar farm and battery storage facility has not yet been determined. The wind facility will be operational by December 2020. Construction of the solar and battery components is planned for 2021 and will qualify for the federal investment tax credit.  

“Portland General Electric’s decision to join with NextEra Energy Resources in constructing the Wheatridge renewable energy facility provides both a well-earned economic boost to Eastern Oregon and an important step on our country’s needed path to green energy. I am proud to have worked with Morrow County and all the local officials who teamed up in the ‘Oregon Way’ spirit of finding solutions to make sure this homegrown renewable energy project could achieve this milestone,” U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) said.

Portland General Electric serves approximately 885,000 customers.