Wind Energy to Generate 20% of U.S. Electricity
Posted on: Tuesday, 13 May 2008, 11:10 CDT
The U.S. Department of Energy says up to 20 percent of electricity in the U.S. could come from harnessed wind power by 2030.In the report, aptly titled “20 Percent Wind Energy by 2030,” the DOE discuss factors and requirements that must be addressed in order to reach this mark.
The report also identifies opportunities for 7.6 cumulative gigatons of CO2 to be avoided by 2030, saving 825 million metric tons in 2030 and every year thereafter if wind energy achieves 20 percent of the nation’s electricity mix.
“To dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance our energy security, clean power generation at the gigawatt-scale will be necessary,” said DOE Assistant Secretary of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy for the U.S. Department of Energy Andy Karsner . “And will require us to take a comprehensive approach to scaling renewable wind power, streamlining siting and permitting processes, and expanding the domestic wind manufacturing base.”
In order to achieve this goal, the DOE said that the number of annual turbine installations would have to increase from approximately 2000 in 2006 to almost 7000 in 2017.
This would call for the addition of 75,000 new wind turbines, many of which would have to be larger than those operating today.
“The report correctly highlights that greater penetration of renewable sources of energy - such as wind - into our electric grid will have to be paired with not only advanced integration technologies but also new transmission,” DOE’s Assistant Secretary for Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability Kevin Kolevar said.
Today, wind energy accounts for only about 1 percent of the nation's electricity.
"The United States possesses abundant wind resources," said the report spearheaded by DOE's National Renewable Technology Laboratory in Golden, Colo., and a 20 percent share of electricity production "while ambitious, could be feasible."
The report highlighted that its findings were not a forecast of actual future growth, but they were feasible, acknowledging that "there are significant costs, challenges and impacts" associated with such unprecedented growth.
Dan Arvizu, director of the department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory, said that the 18-month study provides a "vision" of the kind of wind energy growth technically possible.
"First of all, it's doable, second of all it's desirable," said Arvizu.
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Source: redOrbit Staff and Wire Reports
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