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Duke Energy's (DUK) 350-MW Windpower Project Becomes Operational
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Duke Energy Corp.’s (DUK - Free Report) business subsidiary, Duke Energy Renewables, recently announced that it has begun commercial operation of its Frontier Windpower II project in Kay County, OK. The 350-megawatt (MW) windpower project is currently the largest project in the company’s fleet and an expansion of the 200-MW Frontier Windpower project, which commenced operation in 2016.
AT&T (T - Free Report) and Ball Corporation have signed 15-year virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs) for 160 MW and 161 MW, respectively, from this facility. These VPPAs will settle, on an as-generated basis, tied to Frontier II's real-time energy output.
How Will the Project Benefit Duke Energy?
Currently, Oklahoma holds an installed windpower capacity of nearly 9,048 MW, as stated by the American Clean Power Association. Apart from the installed capacity, almost 1,017 MW of wind projects in the state were under construction toward the end of 2020. Subsequently, to cater to the increasing windpower demand, the aforementioned wind generation project in Kay County will significantly drive growth for Duke Energy within Oklahoma.
We believe that planned investments along with significant growth initiatives undertaken by the company will enable it to provide safe, reliable and cost-effective windpower to its growing customer base. Duke Energy’s Frontier II is also set to have a positive economic impact on the local community by providing significant local tax revenues during the assessment years of its commercial operation.
Utilities’ Adoption of Renewable Energy
To mitigate the deadly effects of climate change in the United States, utilities are increasingly adopting renewable energy sources to produce electricity, with wind and solar energies gaining popularity, in particular.
Per a recent U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecast, electricity consumption in the United States is expected to increase 2.1% in 2021, after it fell 3.8% in 2020. Notably, as wind accounted for 9% of U.S. electricity generation in 2020, the contribution of wind sources to total electricity generation in 2021 is also expected to rise.
Furthermore, as EIA expects electricity generation from wind to exceed hydroelectricity every month in 2021 and 2022, growth opportunities for the U.S. wind market are ample. Naturally, to reap the benefits of the expanding wind market, utility companies are increasingly investing in wind generation projects.
In line with such projections, project developers and grid operators plan to add another 12.2 GW of new wind capacity to the U.S. electric grid by the end of 2021, of which more than half will be in Oklahoma and Texas.
To this end, apart from Duke Energy, utility companies like Next Era Energy (NEE - Free Report) and Xcel Energy are also investing aggressively in windpower generation.
Price Movement
In a year’s time, shares of Duke Energy have increased 17.3% compared with the industry’s 13.6% growth.
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Duke Energy's (DUK) 350-MW Windpower Project Becomes Operational
Duke Energy Corp.’s (DUK - Free Report) business subsidiary, Duke Energy Renewables, recently announced that it has begun commercial operation of its Frontier Windpower II project in Kay County, OK. The 350-megawatt (MW) windpower project is currently the largest project in the company’s fleet and an expansion of the 200-MW Frontier Windpower project, which commenced operation in 2016.
AT&T (T - Free Report) and Ball Corporation have signed 15-year virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs) for 160 MW and 161 MW, respectively, from this facility. These VPPAs will settle, on an as-generated basis, tied to Frontier II's real-time energy output.
How Will the Project Benefit Duke Energy?
Currently, Oklahoma holds an installed windpower capacity of nearly 9,048 MW, as stated by the American Clean Power Association. Apart from the installed capacity, almost 1,017 MW of wind projects in the state were under construction toward the end of 2020. Subsequently, to cater to the increasing windpower demand, the aforementioned wind generation project in Kay County will significantly drive growth for Duke Energy within Oklahoma.
We believe that planned investments along with significant growth initiatives undertaken by the company will enable it to provide safe, reliable and cost-effective windpower to its growing customer base. Duke Energy’s Frontier II is also set to have a positive economic impact on the local community by providing significant local tax revenues during the assessment years of its commercial operation.
Utilities’ Adoption of Renewable Energy
To mitigate the deadly effects of climate change in the United States, utilities are increasingly adopting renewable energy sources to produce electricity, with wind and solar energies gaining popularity, in particular.
Per a recent U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecast, electricity consumption in the United States is expected to increase 2.1% in 2021, after it fell 3.8% in 2020. Notably, as wind accounted for 9% of U.S. electricity generation in 2020, the contribution of wind sources to total electricity generation in 2021 is also expected to rise.
Furthermore, as EIA expects electricity generation from wind to exceed hydroelectricity every month in 2021 and 2022, growth opportunities for the U.S. wind market are ample. Naturally, to reap the benefits of the expanding wind market, utility companies are increasingly investing in wind generation projects.
In line with such projections, project developers and grid operators plan to add another 12.2 GW of new wind capacity to the U.S. electric grid by the end of 2021, of which more than half will be in Oklahoma and Texas.
To this end, apart from Duke Energy, utility companies like Next Era Energy (NEE - Free Report) and Xcel Energy are also investing aggressively in windpower generation.
Price Movement
In a year’s time, shares of Duke Energy have increased 17.3% compared with the industry’s 13.6% growth.
Zacks Rank
Duke Energy currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
+1,500% Growth: One of 2021’s Most Exciting Investment Opportunities
In addition to the stocks you read about above, would you like to see Zacks’ top picks to capitalize on the Internet of Things (IoT)? It is one of the fastest-growing technologies in history, with an estimated 77 billion devices to be connected by 2025. That works out to 127 new devices per second.
Zacks has released a special report to help you capitalize on the Internet of Things’s exponential growth. It reveals 4 under-the-radar stocks that could be some of the most profitable holdings in your portfolio in 2021 and beyond.
Click here to download this report FREE >>