Published on June 4th, 2008
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Houston, TX - Another large wind turbine manufacturer has decided to get in on the incredible growth in the U.S. wind energy industry by building a new manufacturing facility. The German company Nordex, announced Tuesday at WINDPOWER 2008** that it will be spending around $100 million over the next few years to establish its own U.S. production facilities for turbines and blades. As early as 2009, the first locally produced 2.5 MW N80/90 wind turbines will be entering the US market. The investment will be spent on establishing annual production capacity of 750 megawatts by 2012. As of 2010, Nordex wants to invest two thirds of this sum in rotor blade production. Roughly 600 jobs will be created at the new production facility.
On Wednesday, I had the opportunity to sit down with company founder Carsten Pederson for a couple of minutes to talk about the new U.S. manufacturing facility and what effect a lapse in the federal renewable energy production tax credit (PTC) might have on the wind energy industry. He jokingly agreed to chat with me under the conditions that I didn’t ask him tough questions like where exactly the new facility would be located (presumably because they haven’t finalized the deal yet).
Read the rest of this entry »
Published on June 3rd, 2008
Houston, TX - The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Lab has just announced three research and development partnerships with Siemens and the University Houston.
NREL Director Dan Arvizu made the announcement at a press conference on Tuesday at the American Wind Energy Association’s annual conference in Houston. “We are very excited to be a part of this new movement,” said Mr. Arvizu. He added that wind power has come a long way in a relatively short period of time, and that things have changed quite dramatically.
The announcement came just one day after Vestas Wind Systems, and DOE’s Andy Karsner announced that it had chosen Houston, Texas as the location for its new research facility in the U.S. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on June 1st, 2008
Indiana is learning from its fellow “I” state to the west — Illinois — that there are big money and green jobs in wind energy. The Windiana 2008 conference will be held in Indianapolis June 17th and 18th. Said Lt. Governor Becky Skillman, in an article in Inside Indiana Business:
“Indiana is on the verge of explosive growth in wind energy…. There is not one single energy issue or technology that has fostered more interest and discussion among Hoosiers. As these turbines begin sprouting on Indiana farmland there is a huge appetite for information about them, which is why we’re bringing all these people together.”
The conference has been put together partly by the Indiana Wind Working Group, among other entities. Along with the Indiana Renewable Energy Association, they are advocating what has worked to build renewables in other states: a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS). RPS’s assure investment in renewable technologies by requiring that a state have a certain portion of its energy generated by renewable sources. Given the need for jobs in Indiana and the potential for wind in the state, we can expect more support for a state RPS going forward.
Published on May 31st, 2008
Urwerk is getting a lot of notice right now. Not for it’s quirky company name, but for it’s UR 202 wind-powered watch
that is quite the hit among high rolling technophiles, stylephiles and ecophiles alike. The watch, which uses compressed air from integrated wind turbines and kinetic energy to keep ticking, is made by third generation Swiss watchmaker, Felix Baumgartner and his design partner, Martin Frei. The pair, who met in 1995, shared a passion for design and a desire to take form and function to the next level.
While the use of air-friction isn’t new in the world of clocks (since the 18th century, it has been used in chiming clocks), the Urwerk design duo refined the systems to include dual turbines in their 202 model to automatically wind and prevent over-winding the classic timepiece.
The first series of watches out from this team ran around $150,000 USD. So, there is no doubt that these pretty pieces will be pricey. While the price point may not be realistic for the masses, the UR 202 creates an interesting intersection between technology and design while bringing time and space a little closer together.
Published on May 29th, 2008
StatoilHydro, a state-run oil company in Norway, recently announced a 2 year test of a floating 2.3 MW wind turbine off the coast of Norway.
Cables will be used to transmit the power to shore for this $80 million pilot project. The turbine has a height of 65 meters above the sea surface and a weighs 138 tons and will be mounted on a buoy 6 miles off shore.
This technology is unique because the turbine will not be stationary. Three anchors will secure the turbine to the sea floor and can be used at depths ranging from 120 to 700 meters.
“We have drawn on our offshore expertise from the oil and gas industry to develop wind power offshore,” says Alexandra Bech Gjørv, head of New Energy for StatoilHydro. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on May 18th, 2008
Big news for the wind industry, big implications for water.
First, the Department of Energy released a report that confirmed what the wind industry has already claimed: wind could power 20% of the United State’s energy needs by 2030. Even with growing energy demands, our ample wind resources could meet one-fifth of our needs with continued growth and innovation. Other nations, especially Denmark, are already deriving significant fractions of their energy from wind, sometimes with impressive results. The truth is, wind energy is booming even as the specter of the expiring Production Tax Credit moves to the House of Representatives for a vote.
Another large announcement this week came from ex-oilman T. Boone Pickens, who proved (once again) that every thing’s bigger in Texas.
He just ordered $2 billion worth of wind turbines from GE to build the world’s largest wind farm.
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Published on May 11th, 2008
AWS TrueWind has completed the first high-resolution wind map for the United States. This is more than a graphic arts story because, in a variation of “if a tree falls in the forest”, if wind energy isn’t measured, it isn’t captured. In fact, for years states like Illinois, where I live, were ignored because available wind maps showed that it had only Class 2 winds — not strong enough winds to attract big investors.
This is one key reason why Illinois, my home state, came late to the table in wind energy development behind Texas, which ranks first among the fifty states. (Another big reason why Texas is first is because it had already created a statewide, uniform system of taxing oil production, which was easily transferred to the wind industry; but that’s another topic for another blog post.) The AWS Truewind map covers a land area of over 9 million square kilometers, and is sure to be an asset for companies and entrepreneurs wishing to identify and develop wind energy.
“With more than an order of magnitude growth potential and an expansion in wind capacity of 45% in 2007 alone (16,818 MW installed currently), the US represents one of the largest markets for wind energy development worldwide.… being the first developer on the ground at an attractive site prospect is mission critical for many.”
Published on May 9th, 2008
Denmark-based Vestas Wind Systems (VWS:DC) had a big week. First, the world’s largest wind turbine manufacturer announced that they would be building a tower manufacturing plant in Colorado. Second, Vestas reported a 94 percent jump in earnings in the first quarter of 2008, as compared to the same period last year.
Although they have yet to disclose the location of the new tower manufacturing facility, it would be situated to complement the company’s fist North American blade manufacturing plant, which recently opened its doors in Windsor, Colorado.
For the tower plant, the company will need a large parcel of land served by freight rail, a combination that Northern Colorado can provide at several locations, including the Windsor location, where construction proceeds on phase two of the blade plant. According to the Northern Colorado Business Review, more than 1,000 new jobs could result from further expansion of Vestas’ manufacturing presence. Read the rest of this entry »
Published on May 5th, 2008
Rock Port, Missouri is the first 100% wind powered city in the US. Loess Hill Wind Farm, with four 1.25 MW wind turbines is estimated to generate 16 gigawatt hours (16 million kilowatt hours) of electricity annually. 13 gigawatts hours of electricity have historically been consumed annually by the residents and businesses of this town of 1,400 people.
The local electric company, Missouri Public Utility Alliance, will purchase excess electricity when available. They will then supply power when there is not enough wind energy available. Excess wind energy will not be stored but rather fed into the city’s high voltage line, making it an intermittent source of power.
Several factors made this smaller scale project possible. The city has a bluff within the city limits with good resources, John Deere’s Wind Energy financing the project, and proximity to the power grid.
Related Posts on Renewable Energy:
What’s Holding Wind Power Back?
Solar Thermal Electricity: Can it Replace Coal, Gas, and Oil?
The Unlimited Potential of American Wind Power: AWEA
Planetthoughts: First Town in the US to be 100% Wind Powered
Offshore Wind: How Europe Plans to Meet Clean Energy Goals
Published on May 5th, 2008
There are a lot of cool gadgets out there, but there’s a fine line between what’s cool and what’s useful. This is a green list of gadgets that are useful, but boast the extra-cool factor of using renewable energy. No batteries required!
10. The Ship has Landed
The lightship is a solar-powered LED mounted on suction cups. Result: a portable, hands-free, solar light. It’s even weather proof and weighs a slim 8oz. For under $15, this is the best 8 hours of clean light I can think of, and I might just get one for my car/camping trips/travels.
9. High-tech pool toy? Read the rest of this entry »
