AES to purchase wind generation assets in California

Arlington, VA— The AES Corporation announced it will purchase 54 MW of wind generation assets from Enron Wind Systems in Tehachapi, California, bringing the total wind generation megawatts AES operates to 654 MW.

The assets include two wind farm projects encompassing 667 turbines constructed in the mid-1980s in Tehachapi, California. AES currently operates 274 MW of wind farms in California, in addition to the wind generation facilities it operates in Colorado, Oregon, Texas and Wyoming. This year, AES began commercial operation of its 120 MW Buffalo Gap wind farm in Abilene, Texas.

On April 17, 2006, the company announced plans to triple its investment in wind generation over the next three years, as part of its planned $1 billion investment in its alternative energy businesses. The company currently is pursuing an additional 2,000 MW of wind projects in development, primarily in the United States. AES also said it is currently developing wind power projects in Europe, China, India and Central and South America, with an emphasis on countries with existing AES businesses.

Over the next five years, global installed wind generation capacity is expected to more than double, according to Emerging Energy Research. From 2006-2011, capacity is estimated to expand by nearly 80,000 MW worldwide, bringing the total installed wind generation capacity to over 152,000 MW. Much of that growth is expected to occur in North America, where, by 2010, 6,000 MW of wind generation capacity is expected to be added each year.