Greensburg to receive $17.4M wind farm loan

? U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says the government will loan a Greensburg business $17.4 million to build 10 wind turbines.

Vilsack says the turbines will provide power to Greensburg, which is trying to rebuild as an environmentally friendly town since being nearly destroyed by a tornado in 2007.

The project’s total cost is estimated at $23.3 million. The U.S. Department of Agriculture will loan about $17.4 million to Greensburg Wind Farm LLC, a subsidiary of John Deere Renewables.

The remaining $5.8 million will come from an equity investment by Deere & Company.

The 10 wind turbines are expected to generate 12.5 megawatts of electricity that will serve Greensburg and other rural communities through the Kansas Power Pool.