Category Archives: Wind Power Industry

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.

U.S. Small Wind Market Report: 144,000 Turbines Deployed

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A Community and Small Wind Webinar Series
by Department of Energy: Wind Powering America Initiative

Windustry recently held a webinar examining the market for clean, affordable, homegrown wind energy and recent growth in sales, capacity, and incentives for small wind turbines (up to 100 kW) powering homes, farms, and businesses.

Audio and text versions of the webinar are available (WMV 19.0 MB) Download Windows Media Player. Time: 01:23:41. Text Version.

The first in a series of free webinars, the webinar was designed for attendance by the general public, local officials, state and federal regulators, permitting officials, facility siting officials, state and federal policy makers, and others interested in small and community wind development.

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, totaling $139 million in sales. 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 United States 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.

The webinar speakers discussed:

  • Market Highlights
  • Federal and State Incentives
  • Small Wind Market Drivers
  • Distinguishing Product Features
  • Economic Value of Small Wind
  • 2010 Developments and Challenges
  • Industry Perspectives

Speakers

Larry Flowers, AWEA deputy director of Distributed and Community Wind

Moderator

Lisa Daniels, Windustry executive director

More Information

2010 U.S. Small Wind Market Report

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

 

Wind Industry Catching Its Breath

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Wind industry ‘not for the faint of heart’; State mandates for renewable energy mean wind power is here to stay. And lower natural gas prices could even help.
By Neal St. Anthony, Star Tribune

The wind industry, despite a 2010 slowdown after several years of rapid growth, is not dying. It’s growing through a fitful adolescence.

Last week’s news that India-based turbine manufacturer Suzlon will indefinitely shutter its Pipestone facility in the heart of southwestern Minnesota’s wind alley came as a shock to many. But not to Peter Mastic, a 25-year veteran of the energy industry who is president of Minneapolis-based National Wind.

“This industry is not for the faint of heart,” said Mastic, whose company has a dozen wind projects in planning and development. “Our partners and we typically will risk $3 million to $5 million in pre-construction costs over a two- to seven-year development period. And only then do you talk to utilities about power purchase agreements.”

U.S. natural gas prices have dropped below $4 per thousand cubic feet at the wellhead compared with more than $11 in 2008. The New York Times on Monday reported abandonment of several wind projects in the East in favor of coal and natural gas generating stations.

But Minnesota-based utilities such as Xcel Energy and Great River Energy are counting on the wind industry, conservation and other alternative sources to help them meet state mandates in the Midwest to generate up to 25 percent of their energy from renewables.

This is a big deal in Minnesota, which already produces nearly 10 percent of its electricity from wind, compared with about 2 percent nationally. Minnesota is one of 28 states that has adopted a standard of generating 25 percent of electricity from renewable resources by 2025. Read Full Story>>