Infrastructure and Energy Alternatives, an infrastructure construction company with specialized energy and heavy civil expertise, has been awarded the Jayhawk Wind Farm contract for the construction of a 190-MW utility-scale wind farm in Bourbon and Crawford counties in Kansas. Apex Clean Energy, which develops, constructs and operates utility-scale wind and solar power facilities across North America, awarded this project to IEA Constructors, a subsidiary of IEA that manages utility-scale renewable energy and heavy civil infrastructure projects.
Work on the Jayhawk Wind Farm began in February and is expected to be completed in late 2021. Apex will manage construction of the project, and IEA will self-perform all of the engineering, procurement and construction needs of the project, including the construction of project roads, the improvement of existing public roads near the construction site, the installation of collection systems, foundations and substations and the erection of 70 GE wind turbine generators.
According to the American Clean Power Association, Kansas ranks fifth in the nation for wind power capacity and second for wind energy as a share of total electricity generation, responsible for over 6,500 MW of operating capacity and generating 43% of electricity from wind power.
“Wind energy is an essential part of Kansas’ electricity generation, and IEA is excited to partner with Apex Clean Energy to continue the state’s transition to a carbon-neutral footprint,” said Chris Hanson, IEA’s executive VP of renewable energy. “The project site for the Jayhawk Wind Farm is ideal. With high-voltage power lines already in place and accessible highways that will reduce the project’s need for new infrastructure, IEA will be able to minimize the construction’s environmental impact. In addition to contributing to the state’s goal of carbon neutrality, we are pleased to be able to bring continued employment to the state of Kansas and support local merchants, equipment suppliers and more by reducing their need to import clean electricity from other states.”
To date, IEA has constructed more than 20 GW of renewable energy projects across North America.
“We are thrilled to partner with industry leader IEA to make Jayhawk Wind — Apex’s second project in Kansas — a reality,” said Ken Young, COO of Apex Clean Energy. “During construction, the Jayhawk Wind project will generate significant local spending and create hundreds of local jobs. We look forward to creating, with IEA, an entirely new source of long-term revenue for the Sunflower State and Bourbon and Crawford counties for decades to come.”
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