Turbines take first spin in N.C.

This week the first commercial-scale wind farm in North Carolina became fully operational. The Amazon.com project consists of 104 wind turbines in two northeast counties, Pasquotank and Perquimans. The clean energy generated is intended to offset Amazon’s data center power use, equivalent to powering 61,000 homes for a year.

Reports celebrating the milestone recapped the project’s many benefits, including putting more than 30 North Carolina-based companies to work, with a peak of more than 500 workers. Avangrid Renewables, the company overseeing the project, reported spending more than $18 million locally during construction, and now the total landowner payments and taxes will begin injecting more than $1.1 million each year into the local economy. Additionally, 17 people will operate the wind farm full-time.

“Almost everyone in the community knows someone who worked on the wind farm, sold or rented something that helped build the wind farm, or owns land where the project was built,” said Cecil Perry, Chairman of the Pasquotank County Board of Commissioners. “These jobs, and this nearly $400 million investment in a rural part of North Carolina, are welcome—everyone in the county will benefit from the long-term property tax payments.”

The wind turbines are part of a long-term commitment by Amazon Web Service, the division of Amazon overseeing data centers, to source 100 percent renewable energy.