Wind power growth projected for the U.S.

www.purchasing.com
3/12/2010

The U.S. wind industry this year could match the 10,000 MWs (MW) of new capacity installed in 2009, according to Matt Garran, supply chain manager at American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). That would be enough energy to power another 2.4 million homes or generate as much electricity as three large nuclear power plants.

The wind turbine fleet entered 2010 with more than 35,000 MW of installed power, enough to handle the electrical needs of 9.7 million homes, he tells the recent Toll Processing ‘10 conference of the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association International (FMA). The AWEA's long-term goal is to support 25% of the nation's electricity with renewable energy sources as wind and solar.

"At the current rate of growth, wind is a zero-emissions energy source that can offer more and more utilities with known-pricing hedges against oil or coal-based fuel-price volatility," Garran says. Other benefits of wind, he says, include its inexhaustible supply, its use of power generation without the need for water and the fact that its use is complementary to natural gas-powered energy installations.

Garran says that estimates from the U.S. Energy Information Administration indicate that in a single year, the U.S. wind resource potential could produce 364.9 quadrillion Btus (British thermal units), the energy equivalent of all proven oil and natural gas reserves in the U.S. He says the potential capacity of America's onshore wind resource exceeds 10,000 GWs (GW). "The U.S, is barely tapping this vast resource," he says, noting that "current wind installed capacity is 35 GW in the U.S, and 158 GW worldwide."

Garran tells the metals-processing conferences that while the wind turbine blades are made from composite materials, the higher towers and nacelles and hubs require lots of heavy steel. "So, future growth in wind turbine installations will boost demand for steel plate, forged metal shafts, fabricated steel components and cast ductile iron parts."

Wind power installation is centered in the top 10 "windiest states" of Texas, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Iowa, Wyoming, Oklahoma and New Mexico-although offshore developments could boost wind power generations off such other states as Massachusetts, Oregon and California.