Enel’s renewables business, Enel Green Power, closed out 2022 with several new clean power plants in North America, including the 270 MW Blue Jay solar project in Texas, the 250 MW 25 Mile Creek wind project in Oklahoma, and several others. The Blue Jay project also includes a paired battery storage facility expected to begin operation in 2023. Worldwide, Enel built over 5.2 GW of new renewable capacity over the course of the year.
Combined, the new projects in the US and Canada represent over $200 million in new property tax revenue for communities and over $210 million in landowner payments over the projects’ lifetimes.
In 2022, Enel signed 12 power purchase agreements (PPAs) totaling over 630 MW, including deals with Campbell Soup Company, Thermo Fisher Scientific, McDonald’s and five members of its North America Logistics Council, and more. To support the 25 Mile Creek wind project, Enel signed virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs) in late 2022 with Verizon for a 100 MW portion of the wind farm’s output and with MathWorks for a 11 MW portion. The Clorox Company previously signed a VPPA for a 47 MW portion of the project.
The company’s capacity growth occurred alongside its expansion into new business areas. In 2022, Enel announced the additions of Enel X Way, a new business line dedicated to electric mobility, and Gridspertise, a grid modernization subsidiary, in North America. Enel also revealed its intention to open a large-scale PV solar panel and cell manufacturing facility in the US and begin retail electricity sales in select deregulated US states. The expansions are part of a larger, integrated growth strategy as Enel looks to seize the opportunities and incentives brought about by the Inflation Reduction Act to meet market and customer demand.
As demand for clean energy rises, Enel continues to strategically deploy capital for the development of energy resources in North America. At the company's annual Capital Markets Day presentation to investors in November 2022, Enel announced plans to invest around $5 billion in the North American market, with the aim to develop approximately 5 GW of new utility-scale renewable and battery energy storage capacity through 2025. Additionally, Enel intends to add 155 MW of distributed energy storage and 475,000 charging ports by 2025.
“Thanks in part to major policy action and high market demand, Enel is stepping up its contribution to move the US and Canada closer to a zero-carbon economy” said Enrico Viale, Head of Enel North America. “As one of the leading clean energy companies in North America, we feel a sense of urgency to usher in large-scale clean power plants together with other energy solutions that advance our society toward full decarbonisation. Today's announcement of our tremendous progress in 2022 demonstrates our capability to extend the power of clean electrification to more customers than ever before.”
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