West Des Moines Company Gets $75 Million Boost from Google

Google plans to invest $75 million in a central Iowa wind farm operated by West Des Moines-based RPM Access, pushing the California technology giant’s investment in Iowa to $1 billion.

RPM Access of West Des Moines owns and operates a wind farm near Rippey that includes 20 turbines that generate 50 megawatts of electricity. The new deal, Google’s first investment in Iowa wind energy projects, is expected to produce enough energy to power 15,000 homes, the Des Moines Reigster reported.

The farm at Rippey, located near Perry, went online this fall. In addition, RPM Access has a contract with the Central Iowa Power Cooperative, a Cedar Rapids-based electricity wholesaler, to provide wind-generated power, the newspaper said.

Project Isn't Dependent on Tax Credit Extension

The project qualifies for wind-energy tax credits, but isn’t dependent upon them, according to Kirk Kraft, a spokesman for the 5-year-old West Des Moines company.

Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad and Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback, both Republicans, joined Democrats this week in urging Congress to extend the credits, which are set to expire at the end of the year. Some conservative House members have argued against them and the credits were among the issues that separated Republican presidential nominee and President Barack Obama in the November election.

But Branstad and other governors in wind-producing states are ramping up pressure on the lame-duck Congress to extend the $12 billion break. They said that up to 37,000 jobs will be lost across the country if the credit is allowed to sunset.

RPM Access, whose 100-meter turbines are some of the largest in Iowa, is one of the alternative energy success stories in Iowa, currently the No. 2 wind-producing state in the country.

By the end of 2012, RPM Access will have developed over 716 megawatts of operating wind generations projects in Iowa, amounting to about 15 percent of the total installed wind capacity in Iowa, according to the company’s website.

Kraft told the Register that he’s optimistic the credits will be extended. Regardless, the company has “a pipeline of projects that we’ll continue to pursue,” he said.

The  company owns and operates three small wind farms and is developing two large farms near Marshalltown for MidAmerican Energy Co.

Project Will Push Google Investment in Iowa to Nearly $1 Billion

In this morning’s announcement, Google spokeswoman Kate Hurowitz said the investment in the Iowa wind farm fits with Google’s efforts to “green the grid in regions where we operate” and provide a financial return.”

“Google has invested heavily in wind energy because it’s good for the environment and because it will provide a strong financial return,” Hurowitz said. “We believe the world needs a wide range of renewable energy technologies to build a clean energy future. …”

The Internet search engine company operates a $600 million data center in Council Bluffs and plans to expand nearby with another $300 million data center.

Those investments and the Rippey wind farm investment will be discussed in a 3:30 p.m. Friday news conference at the Robert D Ray Conference Room in the State Capitol.

Dignitaries expected to attend include Gov. Terry Branstad, Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds, Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan, Google Data Center Manager Chris Russell, Council Bluffs and Pottawattamie County leaders and state of Iowa economic development Leaders.