BMW’s South Carolina Plant May Add Wind to its Alternative Power Arsenal

February 20, 2009

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Already a big user of alternative energy, the BMW Manufacturing plant in Greer, S.C., is investigating whether wind turbines can help complete the cycle of self-sufficiency.

BMW is partnering with California-based Gold Ring Power LLC to study using wind energy, according to this GreenvilleOnline.com story.

A couple of 50-foot towers have been installed at the plant site to measure wind speed and direction. After two weeks they will be moved to other locations throughout the 1,100 acre-site, to determine areas that would maximize power production.

BMW’s Greer campus needs a peak of about 30 megawatts of energy per day, and that is expected to rise with a $750 million, 1.5 million square foot expansion, according to an article on Goupstate.com.

BMW already maintains a power station on-site, with four huge turbines fueled by methane gas siphoned from a nearby landfill. The plant generates nearly 63 percent of the plant’s electricity, according to the article, which indicated BMW has saved more than $1 million annually from the program.

BMW has employed an array of environmentally friendly features at the site, according to GreenvilleOnline.com. It put in a solar-powered trash compactor at the site, and a household waste container so far has generated three tons of waste. The plant also has been looking at adding solar.

In its data center, BMW is using energy saving techniques.

In Germany, BMW has been testing electric drivetrains on the Mini platform it owns.

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