AWEA: Record 3500 megawatts in wind power purchase agreements signed in first quarter 2018

Customers signed power purchase agreements (PPAs) for more than 3,500 megawatts (MW) of U.S. wind energy capacity in the first quarter of 2018, according to report released Wednesday by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).

That is the highest amount for PPA announcements in any quarter since AWEA began tracking them in 2013.

The U.S. Wind Industry First Quarter 2018 Market Report also found that construction began on 1,366 MW of wind capacity and 4,158 MW of wind projects entered advanced stages of development. The combined construction and advanced development pipeline now contain a total of 33,449 MW of wind power capacity, 40 percent more than this time last year and the most since AWEA first began tracking this statistic in 2016.

Seven wind farms totaling 406 MW came online across seven states during the quarter. The United States now has 89,379 MW of installed wind capacity.

“Word is out that wind power is an excellent source of affordable, reliable and clean energy,” AWEA CEO Tom Kiernan said. “Our industry is consistently growing the wind project pipeline as leading companies, including utilities and brands like AT&T and Nestle, keep placing orders. Strong demand for wind power is fueling an economic engine supporting a record 105,500 U.S. wind jobs in farm and factory towns across the nation.”