Leeward Renewable Energy and GE recently completed the ‘re-powering’ of the Sweetwater 1 and 2 wind farms in Nolan County, Texas, which have a combined capacity of 136MW.

GE Renewable Energy is the wind turbine provider for the project, while GE Energy Financial Services provided ‘tax equity financing’.

The Sweetwater 1 and 2 re-powering programme enhances performance by replacing major existing components with the latest technology and providing an increase in energy production.

Sweetwater 1 and 2 wind farms have been in operation since 2003 and 2005 respectively.

Greg Wolf, Leeward’s CEO, said: “Leeward is pleased to be one of the early leaders in wind project re-powering, bringing new technology to our proven sites for the benefit of customers and communities.

GE brought new technology and project finance experience to make this re-powering project work. With US tax reform to continue to allow clean low-cost wind investments, we look forward to continuing to partner with GE to grow and upgrade our portfolio.”

Kevin Walsh, managing director and head of US renewables at GE Energy Financial Service, said: “Partnering with Leeward on this project expands and continues our leadership in providing financing solutions for the US wind re-powering market.

“We look forward to working alongside Leeward and other GE customers in the future to bring innovative financing structures to wind projects.”

The re-powering of Sweetwater 1 and 2 was completed on 29 December.