Public Tours of Construction of Cross Winds Energy Park Offered by Caro Chamber of Commerce

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Jul 03, 2014, 06:00 ET

CARO, Mich., July 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Public tours of construction of Consumers Energy's Cross Winds® Energy Park will be offered by the Caro Chamber of Commerce beginning July 12.

This public education program will include a safety briefing regarding transportation of large wind park equipment and a guided tour of a construction site where wind turbines are being erected.

"We're pleased to offer this unique educational opportunity to the public," said Brenda Caruthers, executive director of the Caro Chamber of Commerce. "This experience will focus on safety, details on how a wind park is built, and a guided tour of actual construction site. Wind energy is bringing jobs and investment to Tuscola County."

Consumers Energy's $255 million Cross Winds Energy Park (www.crosswindsenergypark.com) is being constructed by approximately 150 workers, in Akron and Columbia townships in Tuscola County.

Cross Winds will include 62 wind turbines, with a capacity of 105 megawatts – enough to supply electricity to 31,000 homes -- when it begins generating renewable energy for Consumers Energy customers in late 2014.

Consumers Energy, Michigan's largest utility, is the principal subsidiary of CMS Energy (NYSE: CMS), providing natural gas and electricity to 6.5 million of the state's 10 million residents in all 68 Lower Peninsula counties.

Media toolkit

ONLINE: Information about Caro Chamber of Commerce tours of Cross Winds Energy Park construction: www.carochamber.org/

MAP: See the park's layout: www.crosswindsenergypark.com/Uploadedfiles/Lakewinds/CrossWinds%20Simple%20Map.pdf

AUDIO: Download an audio clip of a Chamber of Commerce official talking about the tours: https://soundcloud.com/consumers-energy/tours-of-crosswinds-energy-park

For more information about Consumers Energy, go to www.ConsumersEnergy.com, join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ConsumersEnergyMichiganand follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/ConsumersEnergy.

This news release contains "forward-looking statements" as defined in Rule 3b-6 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Rule 175 of the Securities Act of 1933, and relevant legal decisions. The forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties. All forward-looking statements should be considered in the context of the risk and other factors detailed from time to time in CMS Energy's and Consumers Energy's Securities and Exchange Commission filings. Forward-looking statements should be read in conjunction with "FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND INFORMATION" and "RISK FACTORS" sections of CMS Energy's Form 10-K and Consumers Energy's Form 10-K each for the year ended December 31, 2013 and as updated by in CMS Energy's and Consumers Energy's Forms 10-Q.

CMS Energy's and Consumers Energy's "FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND INFORMATION" and "RISK FACTORS" sections are incorporated herein by reference and discuss important factors that could cause CMS Energy's and Consumers Energy's results to differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.

SOURCE Consumers Energy