From the U.S. Energy Information Administration, one of the largest wind farms in the US opened recently. At 999 MW this wind center is claimed to generate enough power for 300,000 homes.
The Traverse wind farm has 356 wind turbines. It is part of the 1,484 MW North Central Energy Facilities project, which also includes the nearby Sundance (199 MW) and Maverick (288 MW) wind farms. The Sundance wind farm came online in April 2021, and the Maverick wind farm came online in September 2021. The wind turbines at all three of these wind projects are designed to operate in cold weather (with heaters that keep the critical components of the turbine warm, among other features), so the turbines can operate at temperatures as low as -22°F.
Yes, most of the cold weather country adds — heaters — to keep critical stuff from freezing. Are you listening Texas leaders?
As of September 2022, 11,714 MW of wind capacity was operating in Oklahoma, the third-most wind capacity of any U.S. state, following Texas (37,210 MW) and Iowa (12,195 MW). Wind turbines account for 38% of all of Oklahoma’s electric-generating capacity, compared with 12% for the United States as a whole.
Wind farms are generally built in areas with significant wind resources. The central United States, including Oklahoma, is home to some of the best wind conditions in the country. As a result, much of U.S. wind capacity is located in this region.
Oklahoma is planning to add another 660 MW of wind power through the end of 2023 and at that point will take second place from Iowa. The article fails to mention one other change shown in the next table.
Fuel | Generation share |
|---|---|
| nat gas | 41.9% |
| wind | 40.3% |
| coal | 13.9% |
Yes, wind is positioned to become the number one electricity source in Oklahoma! (go ahead and play that song in your head). In 2021 Oklahoma had about 11,000 MW of wind generation capacity. By adding another 4,000 MW of wind then the coal fired plants could, in theory, be retired. In reality there are some complexities but the possibility is exciting. If Oklahoma continues on this path it may be one of the states with dark green electricity.