www.environmental-finance.com/
London, 8 May
More than 1,400MW of new wind energy capacity, costing $3 billion, was installed in the US in the first quarter of 2008 – up from just 124MW in the same period of 2007, according to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). AWEA attributed the "breakneck pace" of installation partly to the expiration at the end of this year of the Production Tax Credit (PTC) – a crucial renewable energy support mechanism – and to "the industry finally hitting its stride", an AWEA spokeswoman said.
Last year saw a record 5,249MW installed in the US, and this quarter's growth brings total wind capacity to more than 18,000MW. Almost 3,000MW was installed in the last three months of 2007, with the second and third quarters each accounting for just over 1,000MW of new capacity.
"With the PTC deadline looming, there is a huge incentive to get projects done this year," the spokeswoman added. While there is bipartisan Congressional support for an extension of the PTC, the Senate and House disagree on how to pay for the tax credit. The PTC must be periodically extended and, in previous years when the credit has lapsed (1999, 2001 and 2003), installation has dropped by as much as 93% the following year.
AWEA also reports an increase in the proportion of turbine components in US wind farms made in the US – to around 50%, up from approximately 30% three years ago. It says that "the relatively stable availability of the PTC since August 2005 has allowed US-based supply chain providers to begin establishing a much stronger foundation of domestic manufacturing for turbine components."
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