Sempra Infrastructure, a subsidiary of Sempra has reached a positive final investment decision for the development, construction and operation of the Cimarron wind project, the third phase of the Energía Sierra Juarez (ESJ) wind complex in California, USA.
The Cimarron wind project will total approximately 320 megawatts (MW) of wind capacity, and the project is fully contracted under a 20-year power purchase agreement to Silicon Valley Power for the long-term supply of renewable energy to the City of Santa Clara, California.
The project has a fixed-price turbine supply agreement with Vestas for the supply and installation of 64 wind turbines and a similar fixed-price agreement with Elecnor for the construction of the balance of plant. The Cimarron project will utilise Sempra Infrastructure’s existing cross-border, high-voltage transmission line interconnecting the ESJ wind complex directly into the California Independent System Operator system.
Total capital expenditures for the project are estimated at $550 million (€511 million), and the project is expected to commence generating energy in late 2025.
‘We are excited to cost-effectively expand the ESJ wind complex to support Silicon Valley Power’s needs for clean renewable energy,’ says Justin Bird, CEO of Sempra Infrastructure. ‘Cimarron wind is expected to provide strong financial returns and represents another important step toward our mission of becoming North America’s leading energy infrastructure company.’
Cimarron will produce energy equivalent to the annual energy consumption of more than 84,000 homes and is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by around 210,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) per year. The construction of the new facility is expected to create more than 2,000 direct and indirect jobs with additional local community investment under Sempra Infrastructure’s framework for corporate giving as part of the company’s commitment to the communities where it operates.
The first two phases of the ESJ wind complex, totalling 263 MW, are under long-term power purchase agreements with San Diego Gas & Electric. Once the Cimarron project is in operation, the ESJ wind complex will have total installed capacity of more than 580 MW and will represent one of the largest commercial wind projects in all of Mexico.
Sempra Infrastructure has submitted an interconnection request for an additional 300 MW of capacity at the site, which has a potential expansion opportunity of more than 650 MW, which if developed could result in Sempra Infrastructure owning over 1,200 MW of installed wind capacity in the Baja California region.
