Well, blow me down. Wind power is beginning to make a dent in the energy supply picture.
As someone who grew up on a rainy island beset by gales, and who has spent a lot of his adult life in Tornado Alley, I can attest to the power of wind. But in recent years the ability to convert wind into reliable electrical generation has moved from the developmental and speculative to a mainstream commercial business.
According to the Washington-based research organization Worldwatch Institute in a report published earlier this month, wind power now accounts for 1.5% of the world’s energy capacity, up from 0.1% in 1997. In 2008 alone, global wind capacity grew by 29%, or more than 27,000 MW, to 120,798 MW, a surge large enough to power an additional 27 million homes.
The US led the way, and passed Germany as the top wind power producer in 2008. American wind power capacity (led by the windswept state of Texas) increased by 50% to 25,170 MW, or some 21% of global capacity. Germany, with 23,903 MW of wind power leads Europe’s output of 65,946 MW of wind power, or 55% of worldwide capacity.
Even the slower-to-adapt Asian power markets are beginning to warm up to wind power. The Chinese government has already beaten its 2010 goal of 10,000 MW of installed wind power, and is aiming for 100,000 MW in place by 2020. Led by Tamil Nadu (which accounts for 44% of India’s wind power output), India had 9,465 MW installed at the end of 2008.
While most of the world’s wind capacity currently operating is found onshore, a growing number of installations are being built offshore, primarily off the coast of densely populated European nations. At the beginning of 2008 some five EU countries had operational offshore wind farms. At the end of the year that number was nine. More than 30,822 MW of offshore capacity is expected to be completed by 2015.
On May 12, 2009 the British government committed money that effectively gives the go ahead for the construction of the London Array, the world’s largest wind farm, with 341 turbines to be built off the coast of Kent. Led by E.ON and two other energy companies, the project was put in doubt when Royal Dutch Shell pulled its support earlier in the year. However, the British government stepped in with a financial aid package to save the day. Expected to be completed by 2012, the project promises to deliver power to 750,000 homes.
Despite the current economic downturn that is hurting investment financing for wind projects, the wind seems to be blowing fair for long term success. The growing pressure on utilities to reduce power plant carbon emissions is pushing wind power to the forefront of alternative power options. According to the Global Wind Energy Council, some 332,000 MW of wind capacity will be installed globally by 2013. Danish research firm BTM Consult goes even further and projects that by 2017 global wind power installations could account for almost 6% of the world’s power generation.
It might be time to revisit the Pickens Plan.
Wind turbines and solar panels are the way of the future. They are still very expensive, but as more and more are built, rates will drop! Interesting facts!