American Electric Power (AEP) will press ahead with plans to acquire 1485MW of wind energy projects, despite rejection by Texas regulators to add 309MW of supply in the US state.
AEP said regulatory approvals had been received in Arkansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma for its subsidiaries Southwestern Electric Power (Swepco) and Public Service Company of Oklahoma (PSO) to acquire the wind capacity.
AEP chairman, president and chief executive Nicholas Akins said: “We are disappointed that our Swepco customers in Texas will not be able to benefit from the low-cost wind energy the North Central projects will provide.
“The regulatory approvals we have received in Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will allow us to move ahead with the North Central wind projects at full scale, saving our customers in those states approximately $3bn over the next 30 years.
“As we transition to a clean energy future, our investment in the North Central wind projects supports economic and business development in our communities and will help our customers meet their renewable energy goals.”
The deal covers three wind generation facilities located in north central Oklahoma that are expected to be completed over the course of the next two years.
The Arkansas and Louisiana Public Service Commissions approved the projects in May, and PSO received approval from the Oklahoma Corporation Commission in February.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission also approved the acquisitions in February.
PSO will acquire 675MW to serve its customers in Oklahoma.
The Arkansas and Louisiana commissions approved options to increase their allocations of wind energy if another state did not approve the projects.
With these options, an estimated 464MW will be allocated to Louisiana and 268MW to Arkansas, while wholesale customers will benefit from 78MW for a total of 810MW that will serve Swepco’s customers.