Under the deal, Vestas will supply 44 V100 1.8MW turbines and a 10-year service agreement. Delivery is scheduled for mid-2011 with the aim of bringing the project online by late-2011.
Last month, Idaho regulators approved an unusual power purchase agreement between the utility Idaho Power and Rockland Wind for the project.
The contract, approved by the Idaho Public Utilities Commission, is the first large contract in the state under PURPA, the Power Utility Regulatory Policies Act, passed by Congress during the power crisis in 1978.
All previous Idaho Power PURPA wind projects have been 10MWs or smaller.
Larger projects may still qualify if the developer and the utility are able to negotiate a cost that closely matches the utility’s ‘avoided cost’.
