Avista strikes deal to purchase wind energy from new facility in Washington State

Avista, which provides electricity to parts of Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, signed an agreement to purchase power from the Rattlesnake Flat Wind project in Adams County, Wash.

Rattlesnake Flat was chosen through a request for proposal issued in June 2018.

Rattlesnake Flat Wind is a wind energy facility being developed by Clearway Energy Group. Under a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA), Rattlesnake Flat will provide Avista with approximately 50 average megawatts of renewable energy, or as much as 144 megawatts of wind capacity. Deliveries will begin in 2020.

“Recent market changes, including reductions in the cost of wind power facilities and tax incentives that remain in effect, have combined to make this an excellent time to acquire long-term output from a cost-effective wind resource, which has the added benefit of being located in our service territory,” Jason Thackston, senior vice president of energy resources for Avista, said. “Rattlesnake Flat will help Avista meet its goal of providing reliable energy to our customers at a reasonable cost, while bringing even more renewable energy to our region, now and in the future.”

The wind farm will be the largest renewable energy facility in Adams County. It will have the capacity to generate enough renewable energy to power about 37,600 homes. Also, Rattlesnake Flat will tie into Avista’s electric system via Avista’s Lind/Washtucna transmission line.

“We’ve been closely working with key stakeholders in Adams County, developing partnerships with landowners, businesses and local government to enable this project, and entering into this long-term partnership with Avista is a very exciting next step,” Benjamin Fairbanks, senior director of wind development at Clearway, said. “We’re proud that Rattlesnake Flat will be a source of home-grown renewable energy for the state of Washington and for Avista’s customers for many years to come.”