NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, SRP, Babbitt Ranches, and the Arizona Land Department protect vacant land, create jobs, boost the economy of Northern Arizona, and plan for future generations of Arizonans while: Passionate about moving the state forward with renewable energy. announced that construction of the Babbitt Ranch Energy Center is underway. A 161-megawatt (MW) wind farm with 50 wind turbines on 669 acres at CO Bar Ranch, about 25 miles north of Flagstaff, by early 2024 he will provide SRP customers with clean energy. We are planning to start supplying.

“In our effort to help provide renewable energy, we are grateful for the incredible and wonderful participation of so many companies and government agencies involved in the process of making this happen,” said Babbitt Ranch president and general manager. Billy Cordasco said. “For future generations, we would like to thank the Arizona Game and Fish Service, the Arizona Department of Transportation, the Arizona Land Department, Coconino County, and everyone involved in the Western CO Bar Heritage Preservation Community for their valuable input.”

A subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources will build, own and operate the project, which will generate enough electricity to support approximately 40,000 average-sized homes over the next 30 years and generate approximately $9.5 million in tax revenue for the area. is expected to bring The construction phase will provide a significant economic boost to Coconino County and the state, creating up to 250 construction jobs and stimulating purchases of local goods and services from local vendors.

JD Rulien, Director of Development at NextEra Energy Resources, said: “We are delighted to be working with SRP, Babbitt Ranch and the Arizona Land Department on our newest wind energy center in Arizona.”

Grant Smedley, Director of Resource Planning at SRP, said: “Babbitt Ranch Energy Center’s utility-scale wind farm will complement solar resources by providing energy in the evenings and nights when solar energy is not available.”

Babbitt Ranches, one of the West’s longest-running ranching operations, has been measuring wind speeds, evaluating solar power, and investigating the viability of renewable energy in northern Arizona since 2005. I was. In 2010, the land company contracted NextEra, the world’s largest producer of renewable energy from wind and sun and a global leader in battery storage, to survey ranch sites. A decade of environmental research followed. By 2024, the project has proven viable and operational in the timeframe he needs to meet SRP’s growing customer demand.

The Babbitt Ranch Energy Center will coexist with current land use, including conservation projects, ranching, scientific research, and recreation.

“Our relatives have believed in the ethics of land use from the beginning, a fabricated ethic that continues to be at the heart of the Babbitt family and the family management decisions about running Babbitt Ranch,” he said. said Kodasco, a fourth-generation Babbitt. “We are thrilled to join forces with others who share our strong commitment to our land, environment and future while working together to generate renewable energy for future generations.”

SRP was the first utility in Arizona to add wind power to its energy resource mix and continues to receive all energy output from the 127 MW Dry Lake wind project in northeastern Arizona. This is the state’s first large-scale wind farm. FBNMore

Bonnie Stevens, FBN

Photo courtesy of LightForce Media’s Chad de Alva: Babbitt Ranch became part of the Arizona agricultural industry 137 years ago with 860 cattle and remains one of the longest running ranching operations in the West. In 2005, he began investigating renewable energy potential in northern Arizona. Today, it is a diverse and coexistent arena for renewable energy generation, landscape-scale conservation, recreation, space exploration and ranching.