ATLANTA, GEORGIA (September 24, 2003) --- GE Wind Energy, a business unit of GE Power Systems, has been selected by ENERSIS SA to supply 16 wind turbines and construct two turnkey wind farms in Portugal.
The two projects are Lomba da Seixa II, sited in northern Portugal near the cities of Braga, Vilareal and Porto; and Senhora da Vitoria, sited near Nazaré, north of Lisbon in the central western section of Portugal. Each site will utilize eight GE 1.5-megawatt wind turbines.
The new wind projects will be connected to the grid of Portugal's largest utility, Electricidade de Portugal (EDP), and are expected to begin producing energy by January 2004. With 24 megawatts of combined capacity, the projects are expected to generate enough clean electricity to meet the annual needs of more than 13,600 average households.
"We look forward to working with ENERSIS and are committed to the long-term success of both projects," said Antonio Casla, managing director for GE Wind Energy in Spain and Portugal. "These projects further demonstrate Portugal's leadership in supporting the EU energy strategy which calls for 12% of renewable energy for Europe's total energy mix by the year 2010."
As of January 2003, Portugal had just over 200 megawatts of installed wind energy capacity. GE Wind Energy's new installations - including 31.5 megawatts of new capacity recently announced for ENERNOVA - will increase the country's wind energy by more than 27%. According to BTM Consult, a Danish consulting firm, approximately 450 megawatts are expected to be installed in Portugal over the next five years.
GE's 1.5-megawatt machines are among the most widely sold and tested wind turbines of their size, with more than 1,500 units installed worldwide. The machines are designed and assembled at GE Wind Energy's facilities in Spain, Germany and the United States.
GE Wind Energy designs and manufactures wind turbines with rated outputs ranging from 900 to 3,600 kilowatts, and offers a variety of support services that range from project development expertise to operation and maintenance. The company has developed and/or sold more than 6,000 wind turbines with a rated capacity exceeding 3,800 megawatts, and employs more than 1,700 people worldwide.
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