Crofton Bluffs will be powered by 22 wind turbines capable of generating up to 42 megawatts (MW) of electricity

CROFTON, Neb.--Edison Mission Group (EMG), a subsidiary of Edison International (NYSE:EIX), and Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD) announced today that construction has started on a new wind project capable of producing enough energy to meet the needs of about 14,000 homes in Nebraska.

The Crofton Bluffs project is located in Knox County near the towns of Crofton and Bloomfield in northeast Nebraska, approximately 15 miles south of the South Dakota border. The site is adjacent to another EMG facility near Bloomfield, the Elkhorn Ridge wind project, which was commissioned in 2009.

Crofton Bluffs will be powered by 22 wind turbines capable of generating up to 42 megawatts (MW) of electricity. All of the power produced by the project will be sold to NPPD under a 20-year power purchase agreement.

Crofton Bluffs is EMG's fourth wind energy project in Nebraska, all of which have contracts with NPPD. "Nebraska has emerged as one of the most important states in EMG's wind energy portfolio, and Nebraska Public Power District has become one of our biggest wind energy customers," said Pedro Pizarro, president of EMG. "The state offers abundant wind resources and an economic and public policy environment that is supportive and welcoming of clean energy investment. We are pleased to be working again with NPPD to provide environmentally friendly wind power to their customers."

"The addition of Crofton Bluffs moves NPPD another step closer to our board of directors goal of having 10 percent of our energy resources come from renewable energy," said NPPD President and CEO Pat Pope. "The energy produced will be shared with other Nebraska utilities as we have done at the Ainsworth and other EMG wind farms." NPPD is currently working with Omaha Public Power District and other Nebraska utilities as partners in the project.

Construction of Crofton Bluffs is scheduled to be completed by year end. During construction the project will support about 20 local vendors and contribute about $2.8 million to the state in sales tax revenues.

Once completed, Crofton Bluffs will provide about $16 million in property and state tax revenues and lease payments to local landowners over the next 25 years. The wind farm will be managed primarily by existing staff currently operating the adjacent Elkhorn Ridge project, with potential to add four new positions to support operations at Crofton Bluffs.

In addition to Crofton Bluffs and Elkhorn Ridge, EMG also operates the Laredo Ridge wind farm near Petersburg in Boone County and is building the Broken Bow wind project in Custer County.

About Edison Mission Group

With offices in Santa Ana, Calif., EMG manages the competitive power generation business of Edison International, operating a portfolio of nearly 50 electric generating sites in 13 states powered by wind, natural gas, biomass and coal, as well as an energy marketing and trading operation based in Boston. EMG is the sixth largest owner of wind energy projects in the U.S. with a current portfolio of 31 projects in operation or under construction in 11 states with a total generating capacity of nearly 2,000 megawatts.

About Nebraska Public Power District

Nebraska Public Power District is Nebraska's largest electric utility, with a chartered territory including all or parts of 91 of Nebraska's 93 counties. NPPD is a public corporation and political subdivision of the state of Nebraska. NPPD's mission is to safely generate and deliver reliable, low-cost sustainable energy and provide outstanding customer service. Working in partnership with the state's rural public power districts, cooperatives and municipalities, NPPD helps serve an estimated one million Nebraskans with retail or wholesale electric power and energy-related products and services.