The U.S. wind industry installed 539 megawatts (MW) in 1Q10, the lowest first quarter figure since 2007, according to new figures from the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).
While the industry worked diligently to accelerate shovel-ready projects in 2009 and installed over 10,000 MW, continued lack of long-term market signals, combined with low power demand and price, has allowed the pipeline for advanced projects to slow over the past 18 months.
AWEA has called on Congress to put in place a strong as part of comprehensive climate and energy legislation to provide the hard targets needed to stabilize the industry.
"Financing wind projects is an 18 month process and the struggles in 2009 to raise new capital, combined with lack of new demand from utilities, are now surfacing in the market and reflected in project installations, said Denise Bode, AWEA CEO. "Minimal new installations and current announcements for project delays or downgrades in 2010 are the consequences of inaction to provide a serious market signal. With swift action today, wind project development can be nimble and ramp up quickly, creating new domestic manufacturing orders."
The U.S. wind energy industry is calling on Congress to enact a national national renewable electricity standard (RES) to send the long-term signal the industry needs to invest and grow in a steady, sustained fashion, and to attract wind turbine manufacturing investment on a large scale.
According to a recent national poll conducted by Public Opinion Strategies and Bennett, Petts & Normington, a bipartisan team of pollsters, an RES is also politically popular among American voters with support seen across party lines with 65% of Republican voters, 69% of Independents and 92% of Democrats favoring the legislation.
“Stimulus funding successfully saved thousands of megawatts of shovel ready wind projects and over 40,000 jobs in 2009, but we are setting up a vacuum if we don’t drive stable demand with a national renewable electricity standard,” added Bode.
The cycle of wind capacity installations over the past few years has created a poor environment for long-term investment decisions, particularly in wind manufacturing. Dozens of manufacturing companies have already made commitments to build and upgrade U.S. facilities, despite the market’s booms and busts. These companies have created the foundation for renewing the American manufacturing sector and the U.S. could see explosive growth the instant there is a sign of market stability and U.S. commitment to long term policy.
Vestas (VWS.CO) CEO Ditlev Engel said this week he is doubling the company’s US workforce in preparation for a recovering wind market.
But project develper NextEra Energy Resources adjusted its wind target downward for the year.
Meanwhile, the world’s largest wind power developer Iberdrola Renovables (IBR.MC; IRVSF.PK) had a terrific 1Q due to increased output in Spain.
The AWEA 1Q report is available at the link below.
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