Detroit-based DTE Energy announced the operation of three new wind parks, two of which are now Michigan’s largest. With the addition, DTE will generate around 1,760 megawatts from clean energy sources, enough to power 670,000 Michigan homes.
Located in mid-Michigan’s Isabella County (near Mt. Pleasant), Isabella I and Isabella II have a total 136 turbines with a capacity of 383 megawatts. Fairbanks Wind is located in the Upper Peninsula’s Delta County (includes Escanaba) and has 21 turbines with a capacity of 72 megawatts.
The projects are part of DTE’s MIGreenPower voluntary renewable energy program and will source clean energy purchases from companies including Ford Motor Co., General Motors, and the University of Michigan. Customers who enroll can attribute more of their energy use to DTE’s wind and solar projects, reducing their carbon footprint and supporting renewable energy development.
To date, 28,000 residential and 300 business customers have signed on, supporting more than 100 million kilowatt hours of clean energy generation and avoiding 78,000 tons of carbon dioxide (avoided emissions and equivalencies based on the Environmental Protection Agency equivalencies calculator).
“As the state’s leading producer of renewable energy, DTE is committed to increasing its generation from clean energy sources, including wind and solar,” says Trevor Lauer, president of DTE’s electric company. “Bringing these new wind parks online helps us deliver on our commitment to reduce carbon emissions with the goal of achieving net zero by 2050. Our short- and long-term plans include continued investment in clean energy projects, including some of the largest solar projects in Michigan. Our goal is to get as clean as we can as fast as we can.”
DTE plans to add six clean energy projects by the end of 2022, bringing the company’s renewable energy generation capacity to about 2,700 megawatts, enough to power more than 900,000 homes.
Since 2009, the company has driven investment of $3 billion in renewable energy infrastructure and will invest an additional $2 billion in wind and solar assets over the next three years. to date, the company’s energy projects have created or sustained more than 4,000 Michigan jobs.
A video tour of DTE’s wind and solar parks is available here.
DTE’s operating units include an electric company serving 2.2 million customers in southeast Michigan and a natural gas company serving 1.3 million customers in Michigan. The company has committed to reducing carbon dioxide and methane emissions by more than 80 percent by 2040 and achieve net zero carbon and greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
