This month brought another exciting piece of news for those of us hoping the US will transition to renewable energy in the years ahead. Not only did the US add a record amount of wind capacity in 2009, but new data show that the potential supply of wind power is almost infinite relative to our electricity consumption. The US government agency that deals with renewables, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), finally updated their study of onshore wind resources (since the last comprehensive study in 1993). They now estimate that wind power (more…)
Posts Tagged ‘wind power’
US Wind Potential Estimate More Than Triples
Sunday, February 28th, 2010AWEA: Record US Wind Power Growth in First-Half 2009
Tuesday, July 28th, 2009
US wind capacity continued its impressive growth in the second quarter while fossil fuel consumption continued to fall. The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) just released their second quarter report, and it’s full of surprisingly upbeat news for a sector hard-hit by the recession. The resilience of wind power as a low-cost, carbon-free source of electricity is made clear by the (more…)
New report predicts huge wind power growth ahead
Tuesday, July 21st, 2009A new wind power report just came out of the US Department Of Energy that bodes very well for future wind power growth. After a difficult year in 2009, record growth is expected to continue 2010-12. In fact, wind power is expected to be the biggest source of new electricity supply during (more…)
NY moves to become offshore wind power leader
Tuesday, May 5th, 2009
Denmark offshore, photo by Jim Hodson of Greenpeace
SET’s home state of New York is moving to become a leader in offshore wind power. Both the New York Power Authority (NYPA) and the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) have offshore wind farms they are pursuing. The NYPA project would be the first major freshwater wind farm in (more…)
First Solar profit jumps as costs fall
Thursday, April 30th, 2009
Earlier this week, I shared the news of profits and growth in the wind industry. And yesterday, a key solar company reported outstanding profits as well. First Solar reduced its manufacturing cost per watt more than (more…)
1st Quarter Wind Power Growth Breaks Record!
Wednesday, April 29th, 2009I braced myself for the American Wind Energy Association’s quarterly report, thinking the sinking economy would lead to slower wind deployment in the US. But then I got the just-released report, and they showed another record wind deployment for the first quarter! The US added (more…)
Biggest Wind Utility Grows Profit Amid Downturn
Tuesday, April 28th, 2009
While many companies are reporting lower profits here in 2009, Florida Power & Light shared a profit increase of 46% above the first quarter of 2008. And it was no coincidence that it is the nation’s largest wind power producer. The company made $364 million and (more…)
Kansas Wind May Power Graceland
Monday, April 27th, 2009 We’ve all heard of Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) within states, directives that at least a chosen percentage of a state’s electricity be provided by renewable energy sources. Goals range from 25% renewables in NY by 2013 to 12.5% in NC by 2015. But the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) presented today that Kansas would reap great benefits from a 200% RPS, giving (more…)
Report: 2008 US Wind Growth Even Faster
Tuesday, April 14th, 2009The American Wind Energy Assocation (AWEA) reported yesterday that their initial estimate of US wind growth was too slow. It turns out wind capacity grew more than 8.5 GW rather than 8.3 GW, a white-hot 51%! And they released a projection for 2009 of (more…)
Why Does EIA Underestimate Future Wind Power Growth?
Friday, April 3rd, 2009As I shared yesterday, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) expects wind power to grow from today’s ~25 GW to just 52 GW by 2030 in its reference scenario plus Production Tax Credit (PTC) extension. I think wind will grow more than twice as fast as the EIA projects. And here’s why… (more…)