Patriot Renewables

SADDLEBACK RIDGE WIND, LLC

Carthage, Maine
Patriot Renewables
34.2 MW ~ 105 MM KWH Annually ~ 20 Years
Start Date September 2015
Public Power Purchasers
Belmont ~ Braintree ~ Concord ~ Danvers ~ Georgetown ~ Groveland ~ Hingham Littleton ~ Mass Development Finance Agency ~ Merrimac ~ Middleborough ~ Middleton North Attleborough ~ Norwood ~ Reading ~ Rowley ~ Stowe, VT ~ Wellesley

The project is expected to generate nearly 110 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of clean, renewable energy each year. That’s enough to power over 17,500 homes and reduce the amount of CO2 emissions by the equivalent of approximately 5.2 million gallons of gasoline each year.

The turbines start generating energy when the wind reaches about 7 miles per hour, and they will continue to produce energy in winds up to 55 miles per hour.

Saddleback is interconnected to the electrical grid via a 34.5 kV transmission line that runs underground down the access road, along Winter Hill Road and a short stretch of Route 2. It then transitions aboveground, across Route 2 and continues for 7 miles on wood poles to a new substation in Canton.

In 2014, all major site work and transmission lines were completed by local construction teams. Three out of twelve turbines were erected and began operating in late 2014.
In summer 2015, the last nine turbines were delivered and installed. The project was completed in September 2015, and all twelve turbines have been producing clean energy since.

• Each turbine has a 103-meter rotor diameter, which is over 337 feet.
• Each turbine tower is 280 feet tall, and the tips of the blades reach 448 feet above the ground.
• One turbine weighs over 840,000 pounds!
• The heaviest part of the turbine is the tower, which is comprised of four different sections that collectively weigh over 400,000 pounds.
• The project’s assessment increased the tax base in Carthage by approximately 180%.
• Saddleback contributes at least $48,000 each year to the Town of Carthage for the life of the project.