Representatives from Scout Clean Energy joined the Carroll County Board of Supervisors at their meeting earlier this week to provide an update on the Silver Queen Wind Farm that is expected to begin in about a year’s time. Project Manager Zach Lasek says the project is essentially unchanged from the initial designs that began almost a decade ago.
Lasek says they still have two major regulatory hurdles to clear before they can proceed. The first is an interconnection agreement with the region’s transmission system, which includes a multi-year study to ensure the tie-in wouldn’t negatively impact the existing infrastructure. Lasek says the other challenge is finding a contractor to build the towers.
Construction on the wind farm is expected to begin in the latter half of 2026, with the bulk of the work occurring throughout 2027. There are only around a dozen cranes in the U.S. meant for turbine construction, so speed is a factor. The county approved a road use agreement amendment on Monday to facilitate their movement when construction begins while also protecting the county’s roads. Lasek says Scout Clean Energy also does its best to regularly communicate with their landowner partners, and they have been receptive to the plans.
Despite recent changes to renewable energy tax credits in the Big Beautiful Bill, Lasek says the project is expected to receive all of the support they had planned for when the project was first designed. The project represents and estimated $610 million total investment by Scout Clean Energy Company.
