Virginia's First Onshore Wind Farm Powers Up After 10 Years

Virginia's first onshore wind farm is no longer a dream on paper. The Rocky Forge Wind Project now has giant turbines rising above North Mountain in Botetourt County, marking a breakthrough moment after 10 years of stops and starts.

On Saturday, developers and community leaders celebrated by signing a turbine blade as construction crews continued their work around them. Two of the 13 planned turbines already stand complete, with 11 more on the way before the project begins producing power later this year.

"It's so exciting because it's been 10 years of start, stop, up, down, difficult, good, and now it's happening," said Dan Crawford, chair of the Sierra Club Roanoke Group. Ken Young, CEO of Apex Clean Energy, confirmed the project is running on schedule.

The path to construction wasn't smooth. Local residents worried about environmental impacts and where the energy would actually go, raising questions that needed answers before shovels hit the ground.

The turning point came in 2024 when Google's local data center signed a power purchase agreement with Apex Clean Energy. That deal provided the financial foundation developers needed to move forward with construction.

The Ripple Effect

The benefits extend far beyond clean energy. The project has already created over 200 construction jobs and brought nearly $40 million in business to Virginia companies during the building phase alone.

Once operational, Rocky Forge will generate 79.3 megawatts of power, enough to keep the lights on in more than 20,000 homes. The environmental impact equals taking nearly 24,000 cars off the road every year, while saving billions of gallons of water compared to traditional power plants.

Botetourt County Administrator Gary Larrowe says the financial impact is equally impressive. The wind farm will generate almost $1 million annually in net revenue for the county, making it one of the area's largest taxpayers with up to $25 million in total tax revenue expected over its lifetime.

"That money will be used to benefit the local needs within the community," Larrowe said. The turbines themselves are engineering marvels, each standing taller than a 60-story building with blades nearly as long as a football field.

What started as controversy and concern has transformed into visible progress on the mountainside, proving that patience and community collaboration can turn ambitious clean energy goals into towering reality.