Jul 13, 2022   SOURCE: BusinessWire

Leeward Renewable Energy Completes Construction and Commences Commercial Operations at Panorama Wind Farm in Colorado

Leeward Renewable Energy, LLC (LRE) today announced that it has completed construction of its Panorama Wind Farm located in Weld County, Colorado and that the facility has reached commercial operation. The energy generated will provide Guzman Energy customers with enough renewable energy to power approximately 53,000 homes across Colorado and New Mexico.

LRE and Guzman Energy hosted a ceremonial ribbon cutting event at the Panorama Wind Farm today to celebrate the start of operations at the facility. The event featured comments from Chief Executive Officer of LRE, Jason Allen, and President of Guzman Energy, Christopher Miller, as well as Colorado State Senator, Chris Hansen, and Weld County Commission Chair, Scott James.

“With the Panorama Wind Farm online and generating cost effective, clean renewable power, we will continue accelerating the energy transition and economic opportunity for our current and future customers,” said Guzman Energy President, Christopher Miller. “As we serve rural electric cooperatives, municipalities, and tribes throughout the region, we appreciate LRE’s partnership and support. This is one of many new renewable assets that will exist because of Guzman’s role in the market.”

“We are pleased to have achieved commercial operations at the Panorama Wind Farm in partnership with Guzman Energy to help them deliver reliable renewable energy to their customers,” said Jason Allen, LRE’s Chief Executive Officer. “This project brings our total generation capacity in Weld County to over 600 MW, illustrating the momentum of our ambitious growth plan and continued commitment to developing, owning and operating best-in-class renewable generation assets. We are proud that our three Weld County projects — Panorama, Cedar Creek and Mountain Breeze — support the state of Colorado in meeting its goal of 100 percent green energy generation by 2040.”

The Panorama Wind Farm has 66 Vestas wind turbines with the capacity to generate 145 megawatts (MW) of clean energy. The project created 185 jobs during peak construction and will provide permanent renewable energy jobs and significant property tax contributions to Weld County. Construction and term financing for the project was secured from MUFG Bank, Ltd., National Australia Bank, Silicon Valley Bank, and Helaba Group, and tax equity was funded by Goldman Sachs.

John Wycherley, LRE’s Vice President of Development, added, “We are very appreciative of those landowners, Weld County officials and our financial and construction partners who have played a critical role in the success of the project. The completion of this project would not have been possible without their support, and we look forward to continuing these long-term relationships as we operate the facility going forward.”

About Leeward Renewable Energy

Leeward Renewable Energy is a leading renewable energy company that owns and operates a portfolio of 24 renewable energy facilities across nine states totaling approximately 2,500 megawatts of generating capacity. LRE is actively developing and contracting new wind, solar, and energy storage projects in energy markets across the U.S., with 1.9 gigawatts contracted and 20 gigawatts under development and construction spanning over 100 projects. LRE is a portfolio company of OMERS Infrastructure, an investment arm of OMERS, one of Canada’s largest defined benefit pension plans with C$121 billion in net assets (as at December 31, 2021). For more information, visit www.leewardenergy.com.

About Guzman Energy

Guzman Energy is a wholesale power provider dedicated to communities in search of affordable and reliable energy. We partner with cooperatives, municipalities, companies, and tribes across North America to customize energy portfolios that make economic and environmental sense for today and tomorrow. Together, we are lighting the way forward. Visit guzmanenergy.com.