Westar plans to buy wind power from new plant

? Westar Energy says it plans to buy energy from a new wind farm to be built in Pratt County, west of Wichita.

The utility company announced Tuesday that it will buy the energy from a 200-megawatt farm built for it by an affiliate of NextEra Energy Resources.

The Ninnescah wind farm is expected to be built late this year or early next year and be operational by late 2016.

The company said in a news release that the new wind energy purchase will increase Westar’s renewable energy commitment to nearly 1,300 megawatts.

The project is expected to create about $300 million in capital investment and about 200 temporary construction jobs.