The Reading Wind Facility is producing power.
Southern Power says the 60-plus turbines have all been commissioned and are now producing energy.
This marks a better than 11-year period of negotiations and construction to make the 24,000-acre wind farm a reality. Lyon County Commissioner Scott Briggs calls Southern Power a “great partner” for the wind farm, which is now up and running several years after Evergy built the Emporia Energy Center peak use facility. He says Lyon County is well-positioned to further develop the regional energy industry with power transmission lines and gas pipelines already in place.
In 2018, Lyon County signed a 30-year PILOT or payment in lieu of tax agreement. Lyon County will get at least $300,000 per year, with the first payment coming at the end of this year. The county could use that amount for about a mill of property tax relief. Lyon County also has seen an immediate benefit with increased sales tax and permit revenue.
RES Americas approached the county in late 2008 and got the go-ahead to move forward, but halted talks in 2011 after saying wind speeds weren’t as high as expected. Talks resumed in 2015 when RES said eastern Kansas had become more attractive to wind energy companies, in part due to technological advances. Briggs says the delay led to a stronger project.
Southern Power acquired the facility in October 2018. Royal Caribbean joined the partnership as a link in a verified carbon offset program. Ultimately, the wind farm will create enough wind energy to offset as much as 12 percent of Royal Caribbean’s yearly carbon emissions starting this year.
KVOE News has reached out to Southern Power for comment.
6:30 pm Sunday: Over a decade after idea was first proposed, Reading Wind Facility now generating power
A project better than a decade in the making is now officially complete.
The Reading Wind Facility’s turbines are all commissioned and are now generating power. The 24,000-acre site straddles the Lyon-Osage county line near Reading with better than 60 turbines providing power.
Southern Power acquired the facility in October 2018 after two different rounds of work between RES Americas and Lyon County dating back initially to late 2008. Negotiations ended in 2011 after RES said wind speeds weren’t as high as expected. Talks resumed in 2015 when RES said eastern Kansas had become more attractive to wind energy companies, in part due to technological advances.
Royal Caribbean joined the partnership as a link in a verified carbon offset program. Ultimately, the wind farm will create enough wind energy to offset as much as 12 percent of Royal Caribbean’s yearly carbon emissions starting this year.
