Enel Green Power’s 299 MW Aurora wind project in US to supply renewable energy to Gap Inc.

Enel, through its US-based renewable company Enel Green Power North America (EGPNA), has signed a 12-year virtual power purchase agreement (PPA) with apparel retailer Gap Inc., under which the latter will purchase the energy delivered to the grid by a 90 MW portion of Enel Green Power’s new Aurora wind project, currently in development in North Dakota. The wind energy supplied to Gap Inc. under the agreement is enough to power over 1,500 Gap Inc. retail stores, equivalent to around 50% of the electricity needs of the more than 3,300 stores operated by Gap Inc. worldwide.

The electricity output that Gap Inc. is purchasing from Aurora’s 90 MW section is expected to total approximately 374 GWh each year, equivalent to avoiding the emission of 253,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.

The agreement with Enel Green Power North America will help Gap Inc. reach its 2020 goal to reduce its Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 50% compared to a 2015 baseline.

Aurora, located in Williams and Mountrail counties in North Dakota, will have a total capacity of around 299 MW and, once operational, expected by the end of 2020, will be able to generate approximately 1.3 TWh annually, while avoiding the emission of around 880,000 tons of CO2 per year. The project is expected to start construction later this year.