Shepherds Flat Wind Farm
| Company type | Wind energy facility |
|---|---|
| Industry | Renewable energy |
| Founded | 2009 |
| Headquarters | Arlington, Oregon , United States |
Area served | Oregon, United States |
| Products | Electricity |
Number of employees | 35 (2012) |
The Shepherds Flat Wind Farm is a wind energy facility with a capacity of 845 megawatts (MW) located in eastern Oregon, near Arlington, Oregon, spanning across Gilliam and Morrow counties. Construction commenced in 2009, and the site became operational in September 2012.
This project was developed by Caithness Energy utilizing General Electric GE2.5XL turbines, each rated at 2.5 MW, and it delivers power to Southern California Edison. It contributes approximately $16 million annually to Oregon’s economy and is recognized as one of the largest onshore wind farms worldwide.
Details
Situated mainly within Gilliam County, the wind farm occupies private property roughly southeast of Arlington, positioned between Oregon Route 19 and Oregon Route 74. The state of Oregon offered tax incentives to facilitate its construction, with anticipated local tax and fee revenues around $5 million per year. During the building phase, about 400 workers were employed to install power lines extending over 70 miles and construct roughly 30 miles of access roads across the facility’s expansive footprint.
Originally proposed in 2002 as a 105 MW installation, the plan expanded by 2004 to include 303 turbines totaling 909 MW—effectively doubling Oregon’s wind generation capacity at that time. Official approval from state regulators came in 2008, finalizing a design featuring 338 GE turbines rated at 2.5 MW each. The entire project required an investment of approximately $1.4 billion, which included a decade-long maintenance contract representing the largest portion of the estimated $2 billion budget. In December 2010, the U.S. Department of Energy backed the project with a $1.3 billion loan guarantee supported by federal stimulus funding.
Annual electricity production is projected at around 2 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh), sufficient to supply power to roughly 235,000 households. The operation maintains a staff of about 35 full-time employees.
In April 2011, Google contributed $100 million as part of a broader $500 million financing round alongside General Electric and subsidiaries of Itochu Corp. and Sumitomo Corporation. The wind farm officially commenced operations on September 22, 2012.
Electricity production
| Year | North Hurlburt 265 MW Unit |
South Hurlburt 290 MW Unit |
Horseshoe Bend 290 MW Unit |
Total Annual MW·h |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 485,355 | 214,587 | - | 699,942 |
| 2013 | 542,117 | 585,493 | 612,275 | 1,739,885 |
| 2014 | 580,941 | 601,495 | 652,343 | 1,834,779 |
| 2015 | 489,302 | 535,373 | 568,072 | 1,592,747 |
| 2016 | 550,227 | 585,383 | 612,344 | 1,747,954 |
| 2017 | 458,684 | 492,996 | 519,051 | 1,470,731 |
| Average Annual Production (2013–2017) | 1,677,219 | |||
Concerns
Groups monitoring public expenditures have expressed apprehension regarding payments made to ranch owners leasing land for turbines—up to $12,000 per turbine annually—combined with significant government subsidies. Certain area ranchers involved in these partially subsidized wind ventures reportedly received nearly $1 million in government support during the year 2008 alone.
See also
- Biglow Canyon Wind Farm
- Wind power in the United States
- Wind power in Oregon
- List of onshore wind farms
External links
- BPA.gov: Shepherds Flat Wind Farm — Archived information on Shepherds Flat Wind Farm
- U.S. Department of Energy: Shepherds Flat Wind Farm — Archived documentation regarding Shepherds Flat Wind Farm