The facility comprises 67 ACCIONA Windpower 1.5 MW wind turbines, enough to power 25,000 homes 

ACCIONA Energy dedicated today its fifth wind park in the US, the 100.5 MW EcoGrove facility, in the state of Illinois.

EcoGrove comprises 67 proprietary-technology ACCIONA Windpower 1.5 MW turbines — produced in ACCIONA’s manufacturing plant in West Branch, Iowa — enough to power 25,000 homes and offset 176,000 tons of carbon annually.

The EcoGrove facility is spread across 7,000 acres, and the 67 turbines, which take up less than one acre each, coexist with farming activity.  Permanent engagement and dialog with local authorities and associations in Stephenson County — where the park is located – seeking to bring the project into line with the needs of the local community, makes the EcoGrove park a prime example of co-operation, according to John Blum, Chairman of Stephenson County’s Board of Supervisors.

Talks to develop the new wind park began in November 2006. The construction phase created 125 new jobs and the newly-dedicated EcoGrove park now directly employs ten people and generates wealth locally thanks to lease and concession agreements with local authorities and landowners.

With the commissioning of the 100.5 MW EcoGrove facility ACCIONA’s total installed capacity in the US comes to 490 MW, in five wind parks: the 180 MW Tatanka wind park (North Dakota and South Dakota), the 12 MW Velva facility (North Dakota); Red Hills, with 123 MW; the 74 MW Blue Canyon wind park (Oklahoma) and EcoGrove.

The Company also has a wind turbine manufacturing plant in the state of Iowa and owns and operates one of the world’s largest CSP plants, the 64 MW Nevada Solar One facility, in the Nevada Desert, not far from Las Vegas.

ACCIONA is one of Spain’s leading business corporations. The Company operates in infrastructure, energy, water and services in more than thirty countries. Its corporate motto, “Pioneers in Sustainable Development”, reflects the Company’s commitment to contributing to economic growth, social progress and environmental balance. ACCIONA is sector leader in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index, has a workforce of approximately 35,000 and posted revenues of €12.67 billion in 2008. ACCIONA is quoted on the Spanish IBEX-35 blue-chip index (ANA.MC).

ACCIONA Energy is a world leader in renewable energies. In wind power, it has installed 7,291 MW (5,819 MW of which are proprietary) in 252 wind parks in fourteen countries and manufactures wind turbines using in-house technology. It also owns CSP and PV facilities and hydroelectric power stations, and operates biomass, biodiesel and bioethanol plants. ACCIONA also delivers services to clients interested in renewables projects.

Source: Acciona