WIND

Wind can provide 10 times the amount of electricity that Americans currently consume each year.

The wind provides another free and inexhaustible source of clean energy. Wind turbines harness the kinetic energy of moving air and convert it into electricity without releasing harmful air emissions or consuming water.

Sempra U.S. Gas & Power is an equal partner in two operating wind farms in Colorado and Indiana that generate enough electricity for roughly 135,000 homes. Our company is also constructing two projects in Kansas and Pennsylvania in partnership with BP Wind, with a combined capacity of 560 MW. When completed in late 2012, these wind facilities will be the largest ever built in their respective states. Additionally, Sempra U.S. Gas & Power is developing innovative wind projects in Maui, Hawaii and Baja California, Mexico that could produce up to 1,200 MW at full build-out.

*50 percent owner with BP Wind

Technology

When the wind turns the blades of a wind turbine, it rotates the shaft inside the turbine's generator and produces electricity. The electricity travels through transmission lines to a substation, then on to homes, businesses and schools through local distribution lines.

The bigger the wind turbine, the more electricity it produces. Turbines are generally built in remote areas with more active wind conditions.