Cemex USA announced the commissioning of four General Electric wind turbines with a combined generating capacity of 6.2 MW at its cement plant located in Victorville in San Bernardino County, Calif. The commissioning is Cemex’s second wind turbine project in the U.S. and will result in a total generating capacity of 7.2 MW statewide. In 2012, Cemex commissioned its first 1-MW wind turbine at its Cache Creek quarry located in Madison, Calif.
The power generated from the wind turbines at the Victorville cement plant is equivalent to powering over 1,500 average-sized American households annually. The turbines, which have zero emissions, will prevent more than 11,000 tons of CO2 emissions each year. Approximately six percent of each facility’s energy consumption will be produced by the turbine.
“Our progress towards a more sustainable, energy-efficient and cost-effective future is a top priority,” said Karl Watson Jr., president of Cemex USA. “Cemex understands the value of using renewable energy for reducing the carbon footprint of our operations and is a successful model of its application in the industry.”
Cemex partnered with Foundation Windpower, a California-based distributed wind development company, for the development, construction, financing, and operation of the wind turbine.
“This project demonstrates Cemex’s commitment to find creative ways to save costs and comply with increasingly stringent air quality regulations in California,” said Matt Wilson, CEO of Foundation Windpower. “If more companies could follow Cemex’s visionary commitment to find new ways to operate industrial facilities in a sustainable fashion, then the world will be a better place.”
