Wind Farms in California and New Mexico

FPL Energy, LLC recently dedicated two new wind farms in the western U.S. The New Mexico Wind Energy Center, near Fort Sumner, is the world’s third-largest wind farm, producing 204 MW of electricity—enough to power 94,000 homes. The High Winds Energy Center, located along the Montezuma Hills in Solano County, California, is the largest wind farm in the state, with current production of 150 MW of electricity and plans to reach 162 MW by year’s end. High Winds is aided by the California Independent System Operator (ISO), which runs the state’s power grid. ISO uses high-tech forecasting systems to predict the amount of energy the farm will produce about an hour ahead of time, allowing High Winds to avoid “deviation penalties” for providing more or less energy than it was scheduled to deliver.