VIDEO: Nestlé Installs Company's First-Ever Wind Turbines in Cabazon

Fortune 500 company Nestlé has chosen Cabazon as the site of its first ever wind turbines, the company tells Patch.

Two turbines were recently completed in February near the local bottling plant-- located south of Interstate 10 near Elm Street--  for their Arrowhead and Nestlé Pure Life brands, part of Nestlé Waters North America (NWNA).

The machines are expected to put out an average of 12,900,000 kilowatt hours of electricity annually, powering the equivalent of 1,100 U.S. homes, representatives stated in a news release.

"NWNA chose this location for its turbines, along the I-10 corridor in southern California, because of the high wind potential," Corporate Communications Spokeswoman Jane Lazgin said in the release, while talking about the company's goal to provide wind power for 30 percent of the facility.

Here are is the breakdown of the project, by the numbers:

• Two 1.6 megawatt GE wind turbines
• 12,900,000 kilowatt hours to be produced annually
• 7,320 tons of CO₂ emissions saved (offsetting the equivalent emissions from 20,687 oil barrels)
• 1,897 acres of trees saved

Lazgin said NWNA partnered with the Morongo Band of Mission Indians and NorCal-based Foundation Windpower in the project, to site, host and commission the turbines.

According to Lazgin, Foundation Windpower owns and operates the turbines, selling the power directly to NWNA.

"...NWNA purchases the power produced directly and receives renewable energy credits from Foundation Windpower, reducing the company’s power needs from the Southern California power grid," she said.

The installation and use of wind powered energy is part of NWNA’s long-term renewable energy plan, Lazgin said.

"In 2004, the Cabazon plant earned a LEED Silver Rating," she said.  "Today, the company has 10 LEED-certified facilities, covering 3.7 million square feet and diverting 22,000 tons of waste material from landfills."