page_title: Wind power in Iowa
section_title: List of wind farms in Iowa
hierarchical_section_title: Wind power in Iowa / List of wind farms in Iowa
caption_attribution_description: English: Pie chart depicting sources of electricity generation in Iowa in 2019
context_page_description: Making up 42% of the state's generated electricity in 2019, wind power is the largest source of electricity generation in Iowa. In 2019, over 26 billion kWh of electrical energy was generated by wind power. As of Q1 2020, Iowa has over 10,664 megawatts of installed capacity with 5,590 wind turbines, ranking 2nd and 3rd in the nation below Texas respectively.
  The development of wind power in Iowa began with a state law, enacted in 1983, requiring investor-owned utilities in the state to purchase 105 MW of power from wind generation. Former governor Terry Branstad stated that by 2020 the percentage of wind generated electricity in Iowa could reach 40 percent. This goal has been exceeded, with over 40 percent of Iowa's electricity being generated from the wind as of October 2019 according to the Energy Information Administration, a first in the nation accomplishment.
context_section_description: The following lists some of the wind projects in Iowa.
  The Spirit, Endeavor, Buena Vista, Lost Lakes, and Crosswind Energy wind farms are all located upon the Coteau des Prairies, a slightly elevated area that results in the windiest locations in Minnesota and Iowa. Coteau des Prairies is sometimes referred to as Buffalo Ridge, which is actually a specific ridge within the area, mostly in Minnesota.
  Power from the Iowa Lakes Superior and Iowa Lakes Lakota projects is used by ethanol fuel plants in their respective communities.
caption: 2019 electricity generation in Iowa by source.[41]
exif: {}