By Dave Tyler •
April 14, 2009
Yes, even the wind power is bigger in Texas. The Lone Star State held the top spot again in the just released American Wind Energy Association’s annual industry report.
In fact, if Texas was its own country it would rank sixth worldwide in production, with 7,118 megawatts installed. Texas added 2,671 MW just last year.
The AWEA report breaks down a record 2008 for wind power in the U.S. The U.S. now ranks ahead of Germany as the world’s top wind power producer. More than 8,500 MW of wind power came online last year, the report says, a more than 50 percent jump in U.S. production.
By Andrew Williams •
December 27, 2008
The United States has overtaken Germany to become the largest producer of wind energy in the world, generating enough capacity to eliminate the burning of 91 million barrels of oil per year.
According to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), US wind producers enjoyed another record year of growth in 2008—the third in a row. The country now has an installed wind power capacity well in excess of 21,000 megawatts (MW), enough to supply electricity to over 5.5 million American homes.
By Tom Schueneman •
November 4, 2008
The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) recently released their 3rd quarter market report showing the addition last quarter of another 1,389 megawatts of installed wind energy, bringing the total capacity in completed wind projects for 2008 to 4,204 MW.
With more wind projects under construction 2008 is expected to be another record year, reaching an estimated total of 7,500 MW (enough to power about 2.2 million homes), surpassing the 2007 record of 5,249 MW installed.
In other good news, and in spite of a crumbling economy, the report shows an increasing manufacturing base for wind projects in the United States, with eight new wind turbine component plants opened, the expansion of nine facilities, and the announcement of 19 additional plants in the works.
As a result of this aggressive investment in manufacturing, AWEA reports that 9,000 new jobs have been added and the share of domestically made components has risen from 30% in 2005 to 50% today.
Walking the floor of WINDPOWER 2008, the annual conference and trade show for the wind energy industry, one couldn’t help but be transfixed by all of the different types of turbines - at least I couldn’t. The wind turbine has become the iconic of clean, renewable energy. But the classic three-bladed horizontal axis wind turbine, with its gracefully swooping blades, has become the symbol of not only renewable energy, but also of environmental consciousness and ecological possibility.
Despite the ubiquity of the three-bladed turbine, the oft-overlooked vertical-axes turbines are making quite a splash in the world of wind energy, especially in small and micro-applications. So what’s all the fuss about? Vertical-axis turbines apparently do not suffer from some of the same problems that plague small wind applications in urban settings including, aesthetic concerns, space requirements and sound levels
Other advantages of vertical-axis turbines:
- Can produce up to 50% more electricity per year than conventional turbines with the same swept area;
- Generate electricity at much lower wind speeds, as low as 4 mph (1.5 m/s)Will continue to generate power in high wind speeds, up to 130 mph (60m/s) depending on the mode;
- Direct-drive units with no gearbox means a more efficient transfer of energy and no leaking oil;
- Will not harm wildlife, in terms of bird and bat strikes.
Below, I’ll cover some more basic differences and show you a few photos and short videos of some of these turbines I saw down in Houston at WINDPOWER 2008.
