Category Archives: AWEA

AWEA’s Backgrounder on Wind Energy and the State of the Union

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On January 24, 2012, AWEA issued a press release stating that several media outlets were reporting that President Obama would mention wind power and manufacturing jobs in his State of the Union address this evening, including reports that Bryan Ritterby of American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) member company Energetx Composites of Holland, MI will be First Lady Michelle Obama’s guest for the speech.

This would mark the fifth time wind power has been mentioned in the SOTU in the last decade, by President George W. Bush in 2006 and 2007 and previously by President Obama in 2009 and 2011.

Denise Bode, CEO of the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), issued the following statement that day as background for reporters covering the speech.

“Wind energy is one of the few sources of agreement in a divided Washington. But with an expiration of wind’s key federal incentive, the Production Tax Credit (PTC), looming at the end of the year, these good manufacturing jobs are in peril.

Wind energy has installed more than a third of all new electric generation in this country in recent years and is powering one of America’s fastest growing manufacturing sectors. Over the last six years, U.S. domestic production of wind turbine components has grown 12-fold, to more than 400 facilities in 43 states. And with stable tax policy wind power is poised to grow to almost 100,000 jobs in just four years and stay on track toward supporting 500,000 jobs by 2030 according to forecasts by the George W. Bush administration.

Wind power is on schedule to generate 20 percent of America’s electricity by 2030 and already generates 20 percent of the electricity in Iowa and South Dakota. And this success story is spreading all across the U.S.

However, with uncertainty over the PTC, layoffs have already begun and studies have forecast they will increase with each month we near expiration.

Fortunately, a growing bipartisan coalition understands this urgency. Political and business leaders including more than a dozen Republican cosponsors and groups like the National Association of Manufacturers, Edison Electric Institute and American Farm Bureau Federation realize that wind power is not a Republican or Democratic issue, it is a manufacturing jobs issue. Extending the PTC will keep these good American manufacturing jobs here and keep providing a new source of clean, affordable energy to American consumers.”

Source: AWEA
Link to article from AWEA’s site.

Is A Wind Turbine A Smart Investment?

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Energy independence in the form of renewable wind energy is no longer a pipe dream.

According to the American Wind Energy Association, America’s small wind turbine industry saw substantial growth in 2010, highlighted by a 26 percent expansion in the market for small wind systems with 25.6 megawatts (MW) of capacity added, as well as a robust increase in sales revenue. Nearly 8,000 small wind units were sold last year, reported the AWEA, totaling $139 million in sales.

With electricity producing wind power from wind turbines fast being viewed as smart investments by landowners of home, farms and business, the benefits of wind energy are becoming more evident and rightly so. Wind energy is clean, renewable and predictable. It’s also efficient, lowers overhead costs and has major federal government incentives.

The simplicity of their designs is nothing short of a modern marvel. Modern wind turbines generate electricity through two basic designs: vertical-axis or “egg-beater” style or horizontal-axis (propeller-style) machines. Horizontal-axis wind turbines are most common today, constituting nearly all of the “utility-scale” (100 kilowatts (kW) and larger) turbines on the global market. Their wind turbine towers are also quite sturdy and generally made out of tubular steel. The blades and nacelle (generator housing) are made of fiberglass-reinforced polyester or wood-epoxy.

In terms of their size, utility-scale wind turbines for land-based wind farms have rotor diameters ranging from about 50 meters to about 90 meters, and with towers of roughly the same size. A 90-meter machine would have a total height from the tower base to the tip of the rotor of approximately 135 meters (442 feet). Offshore turbine designs generally have larger rotors—with some of the largest having a 110-meter rotor diameter—because it is easier to transport large rotor blades by ship than by land. Small wind turbines intended for residential or small business use are much smaller. Most have rotor diameters of eight meters or less, and they would be mounted on towers of 40 meters in height or less.

The science behind wind turbine functionality is equally impressive and easy to understand. A wind energy system transforms the kinetic energy of wind into what’s called “mechanical or electrical energy” that can be harnessed for practical use. Mechanical energy is most commonly used for pumping water in rural or remote locations – the “farm windmill” still seen in many rural areas of the U.S. is usually a mechanical wind-powered pump, but it can also be used for other purposes such as grinding grain, sawing or pushing a sailboat.

The first step to any successful wind turbine project is to understand all the options available. It should begin with a full feasibility study and analysis, detailing the wind speed potential at your specific site. Like with most large equipment purchases, financing plays an important role. What lenders like most about wind turbine financing is that the cash flow they produce can pay all or most of the turbine payment. Additionally, wind turbines have a long proven useful life of 20 years and they maintain a high residual value, even at the end of their initial useful life.

Through education and knowledge, you can learn how to best use wind energy to help control and predict your future costs while setting the green energy standard in your community. Go green!

Small Wind Market Continues Growth in 2010 Says AWEA

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America’s small wind turbine industry saw substantial growth in 2010, the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) reported on October 20, 2011, highlighted by a 26 percent expansion in the market for small wind systems with 25.6 megawatts (MW) of capacity added, as well as a robust increase in sales revenue. Nearly 8,000 small wind units were sold last year, totaling $139 million in sales.

“Across the country people are saving money and helping the environment by using small wind turbines to power their homes, farms and businesses” said Larry Flowers, AWEA Deputy Director of Distributed and Community Wind. “This report shows that the market for clean, affordable, homegrown wind energy is as good in small scale applications as it is for large utilities.”

Small wind turbines are defined as those that are 100 kilowatts and under.  The U.S. small wind industry represents an estimated 1,500 full-time equivalent jobs. Small wind turbines manufactured in North America typically incorporated 80-percent domestic content.

With small wind scaling up during the last few years, its benefits are becoming more noticeable. Growth in 2010 pushed cumulative sales in the U.S. to an estimated 179 MW of capacity—a total that reaches well into the range of many utility-scale wind farms. As a result, small wind is having a positive impact on the environment, as installations now annually displace 161,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide. That is the equivalent of taking 28,000 cars off the road.

Small wind’s 2010 growth was supported by sound policy at the federal, state, and local levels. Those policies enabled more than $30 million in rebates, tax credits, and grants to go to small wind purchasers, users, and others. Though more than 30 states offered small wind incentives and grants, a long-term and consistent federal policy is crucial to the growth of the country’s small wind industry. The current Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for small wind expires at the end of 2016.

The 2010 U.S. Small Wind Market Report can be accessed at http://awea.org/learnabout/smallwind/index.cfm