Sponsored content contributed by AOC Business Partner: Avangrid
Avangrid, a leading sustainability company and member of the Iberdrola Group, recently became a new partner of the Association of Oregon Counties (AOC). The company and its staff are thrilled to engage with AOC members on a variety of topics, especially those related to renewable energy and climate change.
Avangrid operates in 24 states, and its Renewables business is headquartered in Portland, Oregon. Oregon is vital to Avangrid’s success and future growth as a company.
In the Columbia River Gorge, Avangrid was one of the first clean energy developers to build utility-scale wind power. The Company’s oldest project in Oregon, Klondike I, reached commercial operations in 2001. Its newest project in Oregon, Pachwáywit Fields, a solar project in Sherman County, finished construction in 2023. Avangrid maintains a build, own, operate philosophy and now operates wind, solar, and gas facilities in Sherman, Gillam, Crook, and Klamath Counties totaling over 2.2 GW of installed capacity, with a pipeline of projects that will continue to support Oregon in meeting its climate goals.
In addition to maintaining a world class fleet of operating energy projects, Avangrid is actively developing a 1.3 GW pipeline of new renewable energy projects in Oregon that will support the state’s climate goals. Most proposed new assets are in Morrow, Sherman, and Gilliam Counties near existing assets already in operation. Avangrid values the strong relationships it built within these communities and looks forward to maintaining them for years to come.
The Company’s Portland office and clean energy projects support nearly 400 jobs in Oregon. Additionally, Avangrid’s Oregon projects have paid over $140 million in property taxes, which mostly support local school districts. These tax revenues are on top of the lease payments Avangrid makes to participating landowners, representing additional investment in the communities in which it operates.
“Avangrid is one of the reasons my job is a whole lot easier,” said Sherman County Judge Joe Dabulskis, during a grand opening celebration for Avangrid’s National Training Center this summer. “Prior to the renewable energy industry coming to Sherman County, Sherman County was the second poorest county in the state. I hear nightmare stories of what happened back in those days around budget time. I don’t have that problem.”
Because Avangrid has long-term plans in the region, it strives to be a good community partner in the counties it is located in and continues to find ways to support Oregon.
For example, this year the Company launched the largest solar grazing operation in the Pacific Northwest. In recognizing community concerns related to fire risk, it partnered with local rancher, Cameron Krebs, to graze thousands of sheep underneath and around solar panels at its Pachwáywit Fields solar farm, the largest operating solar farm in the state. The sheep help manage the grass and weeds to reduce the summertime fire risks at the site, while replacing gas-powered mowers and contributing to a more natural use of the land.
In partnering with local ranchers, like Krebs, Avangrid is deepening its ties with the community and supporting a circular economy within Oregon. The solar grazing operation helps to generate electricity while supporting the production of food and wool fiber. Krebs is a wool supplier to Pendleton Woolen Mills, a beloved Oregon-based company with over 100 years of history.
Also, Avangrid recently welcomed the first cohort of newly hired wind technicians to its National Training Center. The center was built in the heart of Sherman County, near several of the Company’s operating wind farms, showing the region that Avangrid is committed to it long-term. Hundreds of wind and solar technicians from all over the country will come through Sherman County, spending money on food and services along the way.
Avangrid is happy to be a part of the AOC community and looks forward to working with fellow members going forward.