Oklahoma State University (OSU) and OG&E signed a contract to supply wind energy to the Stillwater campus.
Once approval is received from the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, wind power will be supplied to help the requirements of OSU’s power generation at present and in the future with this 20 year agreement.
OSU is anticipating that this new wind generation contract along with additional power sources of OG&E will offer wide options for the university to optimize savings during the contract. According to this deal, OSU has planned to phase out its 62 year old on-campus cogeneration unit and build a new efficient chiller or boiler plant.
The President of OSU, Burns Hargis, commented that the university has a significant responsibility to direct the way for utilizing the natural resources in an efficient manner. The contract signed with OG&E is part of the sustainability plan, which has an intention of saving money, enhancing the efficiency and decreasing the emissions of carbon.
Hargis commented that this deal with OG&E has harmonized the all-CNG community or campus bus fleet of the university and its system-wide energy campaign. A portion of those energy savings have assisted research and academic pursuits.
Additionally, Hargis added that wind and natural gas are Oklahoma’s two copious natural resources and utilizing these resources to produce energy for the Stillwater campus has allowed to reach a high level of environmental stewardship and also helps the significant energy driven economy in Oklahoma.
NextEra Energy will be engaged by OG&E to construct a 60 MW wind farm in Oklahoma for helping the OSU project. During November 2011, OwnEnergy sold the community wind development model project to NextEra.
Source: http://osu.okstate.edu/