The U.S. Department of Energy’s Wind and Hydropower Technologies Program released its first ever “Annual Report on U.S. Wind Power Installation, Cost, and Performance Trends: 2006.”
The report provides a comprehensive overview of trends in the U.S. wind power market, with a particular focus on 2006. The primary authors are Ryan Wiser and Mark Bolinger, both of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
The need for such a report has become apparent in the past few years, as the wind power industry has entered an era of substantial growth, both globally and in the United States. “With the market evolving at such a rapid pace, keeping up with trends in the marketplace has become increasingly difficult,” says co-author Ryan Wiser. “Yet, the need for timely, objective information on the industry and its progress has never been greater.”
“Much of the information presented in the report reflects a maturing U.S. wind power industry on solid footing, yet also grappling with the implications of unprecedented growth,” notes co-author Mark Bolinger.
Some of the key findings of the report include:
” With 2,454 MW of wind capacity added in 2006, the U.S. is the fastest growing wind market worldwide. But there still remains substantial room for expansion, as wind power currently generates less than one percent of total U.S. electricity consumption.
” Wind power has provided good value in wholesale power markets in recent years, and has generally been priced at or below the cost of conventional fossil generation.
” The cost of turbines has risen since 2002, reversing the decline in total wind project costs and driving up the cost of generating wind power. The full effect of this cost increase will continue to play out in coming years as recent turbine cost increases flow through to wind power prices.
” Wind project performance has increased over the last several years, driven in part by higher tower heights, improved project siting, and technological advancements.
” The wind market is in a period of transition, as electric utilities have shown increased interest in wind project ownership, and merchant wind power plants and sales to power marketers have become more common.
A PowerPoint presentation based on the report can be found at: http://www1.eere.energy.gov/windandhydro/pdfs/wiser_data_report_summary_2006.pdf
Download report:
Loading...