Pattern Energy Signs PPAs for Major SunZia Wind Project

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Pattern Energy Group LP (San Francisco, California) said Monday it has signed two long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) for some of the power from the SunZia Wind project in New Mexico. The project will supply more than 3,000 megawatts (MW) of wind generation that will be transported to energy markets in the western U.S. via a related transmission project. Industrial Info is tracking more than $5 billion worth of related projects.

Both projects are still securing necessary approvals, but Pattern Energy expects construction to begin later this year. According to the company website, the combined wind and transmission efforts represent the largest clean-energy infrastructure project in U.S. history.

SunZia Wind is expected to utilize turbines from Siemens Gamesa (Zamudio, Spain) to generate at least 3,000 MW of wind power. Pattern Energy has selected Quanta Services Incorporated (Houston, Texas) to provide engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services. The project's completion is expected in 2026. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can click here for a detailed project report.

The PPAs Pattern Energy recently signed to supply power from SunZia are with the Regents of the University of California and Shell Energy North America (Houston, Texas), a unit of Shell plc (NYSE:SHEL) (London, England), respectively.

"We welcome these exciting new relationships with Shell Energy and UC Regents on the delivery of New Mexico wind power," said Hunter Armistead, chief executive officer of Pattern Energy, in a press release. "We are committed to harnessing New Mexico's wind to generate clean power for 3 million Americans and continuing to have conversations with interested customers throughout the western region."

Shell Energy has other clean-energy PPAs in place, including a 15-year agreement with EDF Renewables North America (San Diego, California) for 132 MW of solar power from the operational Maverick 7 portion of EDF's Palen-Maverick Solar Plant in Portland, Oregon. Subscribers can click here for the related plant profile. Shell Energy contracted more power between 2014 and 2022 than any other energy company, with more than 1.2 gigawatts (GW), according to a January report from the American Clean Power Association (ACP) (Washington, D.C.) on corporate clean power purchases in the U.S.

The SunZia Transmission project, which recently passed its final major federal regulatory hurdle before the start of construction, is intended to carry the SunZia wind facility's generation, and other renewable energy, from New Mexico to markets in Arizona, and on to California via existing transmission lines.

SunZia Transmission is a 550-mile, high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) line that would run more than 500 miles across federal, state and private lands. Four segments are planned: from the proposed SunZia East Substation in Lincoln County, New Mexico, to the proposed SunZia South Substation in Luna County; from the proposed Lordsburg Substation in Hidalgo County to the proposed Willow Substation in Graham County in Arizona; from Willow to the operational Tortolita Substation in Tucson in Pinal County, and the line will terminate at the operational Pinal Central Substation, southeast of Phoenix.

Subscribers to the GMI Database can click here for a full list of project reports related to the SunZia transmission project.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).