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U.S. Wind Power Capacity Hits 10
Gigawatts
The wind energy industry hit a milestone when U.S. wind power capacity reached 10,000
megawatts (MW), or 10 gigawatts. According to the American
Wind Energy Association (AWEA),
U.S. wind power is now generating enough electricity to serve more than 2.5 million homes.
As noted by AWEA, the industry grew
slowly at first, reaching 1,000 MW in 1985, and requiring
more than a decade to reach 2,000 MW, in 1999. Since then,
U.S. wind power has increased fivefold. In this year alone, AWEA expects
3,000 MW of wind power to be brought online.
See the:
- AWEA
press release (http://www.awea.org/newsroom/releases/US_Wind_Energy_
Installations_Milestone_081006.html).
A number of recent reports have confirmed the value of wind power. A report from the Utility
Wind Integration Group (UWIG) found no issues with integrating wind power into electricity
grids, provided the wind energy projects are designed and operated well. A study from DOE's
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) examined the economic impacts of new wind,
coal, and natural gas power plants in Arizona, Colorado, and Michigan, and found that wind
power plants provided the greatest economic benefit to each state. Finally, a Frost & Sullivan
report expects the quickly growing wind power industry to place tremendous pressure on
the supply chain for wind turbines. The report expects the industry to outsource the production
of non-essential turbine components and anticipates that both turbine manufacturers and
wind power developers will secure long-term supply contracts to help reduce lead times
and keep costs down.
See the:
- UWIG
press release (http://www.uwig.org/IntegrationStateoftheArt.htm);
- the full UWIG
report (http://www.uwig.org/UWIGWindIntegration052006.pdf — PDF
123 KB);
- and the NREL
report (http://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy06osti/37720.pdf — PDF
983 KB).
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