These two wind turbine towers just to the west of Blue Earth were recently purchased by a company in Ruthton, in Southwest Minnesota. When they once again begin working, the electricity will be purchased by Blue Earth Light and Water.

The two wind turbine towers on the west side of Blue Earth have long been dormant and their blades have not turned in quite some time.

However, that will soon change as the two wind towers were recently sold.

Many Blue Earth residents have assumed the two wind turbine towers were owned by Blue Earth Light and Water, but that is simply not true, says Tim Stoner, manager of Blue Earth Light and Water.

“Those two towers have been owned by private companies,” Stoner says. “We just have a contract with the company that owns them to purchase any power that they generate.”

The two towers, which were first built and operated in 2006 and can generate 3 megawatts of electricity, have been owned for the past few years by a company called Constellation.

Constellation listed the Blue Earth site on their website as Blue Breezes Wind Project. They did not tell BE Light and Water why the towers were not running.

Constellation was previously known as Constellation Energy Group until a merger with Exelon in 2012. Now they are known as Constellation, an Exelon Company.

And now, just recently, Constellation has sold the two wind turbine towers to a company called Midwest Power Partners LLC, based in the small town of Ruthton in Southwest Minnesota.

“It is nice the wind towers are now under a local owner, one based in Minnesota,” Stoner says. “One that will actually operate the wind turbines.”

Midwest Power Partners owns and manages several wind farms in Minnesota. Their plan is to rebuild the two Blue Earth units fairly soon and get them running again.

“They purchased the two wind turbine towers and also the contract with us,” Stoner says. “So we will continue the current contract to purchase any power they generate.”

The contract goes through 2025, at which time it can be renegotiated, Stoner explains.

“This is actually a very good thing for us,” Stoner adds. “It helps us maintain progress on the state mandate for 100 percent use of renewable energy by 2040.”

Stoner says it fits into Blue Earth Light and Water’s renewable energy portfolio quite well and they are pleased to see the two windtowers come back on line.

Midwest Power Partners president Jason DeRuyter says they have been working on the wind generators all summer, even before they actually owned them.

“One is already running and the other one was and will be again as soon as we can swap out the generator in it,” DeRuyter says. “We are scheduling a crane to come in, when the wind is low.”

He says his company owns 25 other wind turbines and manages another 25 for other owners.

“It took a couple of years to get this deal done, but we are happy to be here,” DeRuyter adds. “And we will have them both running like new very soon.”