The Tuscola Bay II Wind Energy Center. Photo by: NextEra Energy Resources (www.nexteraenergyresources.com)

June 18 (Renewables Now) - NextEra Energy Resources, a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Inc (NYSE:NEE), will deliver 300 MW of wind power to AT&T Inc (NYSE:T) under a new deal that will lift its contracted capacity with the US telecoms giant to 820 MW.

The companies have sealed a power purchase agreement (PPA) that will see AT&T get 300 MW of wind power from two of NextEra’s new wind parks in Texas’ Wilbarger and Hardeman Counties. The contract is part of the expansion of AT&T’s renewable energy programme, according to a joint press release on Friday.

"We're going big on renewable energy. It's a clean, abundant, renewable source of home-grown power," commented Joe Taylor, vice president of global tech optimisation and implementation at AT&T.

AT&T in February agreed to buy power generated by 520 MW of NextEra-owned wind farms in Oklahoma and Texas under one of the biggest corporate renewable PPAs. The off-take deals are for 220 MW from the Minco V wind project in Oklahoma’s Caddo county and for 300 MW from the Torrecillas scheme in Webb and Duval counties, southern Texas.

The contracted capacity of 820 MW is estimated to be enough to meet the demand of over 372,000 households each year. The particular schemes backed by AT&T are expected to open around 1,000 jobs in Texas and Oklahoma during the construction phase and bring USD 357 million (EUR 307.6m) in property tax revenues for local communities and lease payments, NextEra calculates."

Source: Renewablesnow