The U.S. Department of Energy announced awards of more than $5 million to support U.S. wind energy development.
Two projects receiving a total of $3.4 million over two years will improve short-term wind forecasting, which will accelerate the use of wind power in electricity transmission networks by allowing utilities and grid operators to more accurately forecast when and where electricity will be generated from wind power.
Three additional projects are receiving a total of more than $1.8 million to boost the speed and scale of midsize wind turbine technology development and deployment. DOE said these grants will help reach the goal of doubling U.S. renewable energy generation capacity and creating clean energy jobs.
Electricity grid operators need to accurately predict and plan for the energy output of wind power plants in their systems. With better forecasting, utilities can more reliably connect variable power sources such as wind energy with electricity grids, and can decrease their need for back-up energy sources such as natural gas or coal-fired power.
The two funding recipients–AWS Truepower LLC in Albany, New York and WindLogics, Inc. in Sant Paul, Minnesota–will lead teams of several partners and work with DOE and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to deploy advanced atmospheric measurement systems over a broad area, provide data that allow advanced weather prediction systems to improve short-term turbine-level wind forecasts, and demonstrate the value of these forecasting improvements for electric utility operations.
In addition to the funding for short-term wind energy forecasting, DOE announced that three projects will receive approximately $620,000 each to accelerate the first phase of development, testing, and commercialization of domestically manufactured midsize wind turbines with rated generating capacities between 200 and 500 kilowatts.
Midsize turbines are often used to generate renewable electricity at schools, farms, factories, private and public facilities, remote locations, and community and tribal wind energy plants. Their size allows installation at the site of electricity use, minimizing the need for new electricity transmission infrastructure.
DOE will provide funding over two years to strengthen the U.S. midsize turbine market and help address factors that have contributed to slow growth in the midsize wind turbine market to date, including a small number of available midsize turbine models. Each of the grantees will be eligible to apply for a second phase of the projects, with up to $4 million available in additional funding.
The companies choses for midsize wind turbine development include:
Clean Green Energy, LLC (Brighton, Michigan)
This project is working to bring a 200-kilowatt vertical axis wind turbine design into cost-effective mass production. The vertical turbine design will allow for distributed onsite generation near buildings.
Northern Power Systems (Barre, Vermont)
This project is leveraging almost $10 million in private sector capital to develop a 450-kilowatt turbine, helping to complete the final turbine design, procurement, and prototype testing within 18 months.
Texas Tech University (Lubbock, Texas)
This project aims to adapt a turbine featuring two blades located downwind of the tower. This turbine design builds upon a commercially-produced architecture and scales it up to a 500-kilowatt rated output. The tilt-down guyed tower (braced by guy wires and hinged near its base) allows installation without cranes. This project seeks to compete on cost with fossil fuel power generation.
In Other DOE News…
DOE also announced 27 new proposed penalties against companies selling products in the United States without certifying that they comply with energy efficiency or water conservation standards.
The 27 companies include manufacturers, importers, and private labelers of appliance, plumbing, and lighting products. Specific companies on the list include General Electric Appliances, Sanyo Electric Co., and Daewoo International Corp.
"This unprecedented number of cases reflects our commitment to enforce all aspects of the Department’s conservation standards," said Scott Blake Harris, General Counsel of the Department.
Unless companies address the DOE claims within thirty days, the Department will file actions either in the United States District Court or with an Administrative Law Judge to demand payment of the proposed penalties.
Over the past year, the Department’s appliance standards enforcement efforts have removed from the market 66 products that failed to meet federal energy efficiency standards and initiated seventy-five enforcement investigations and actions.
You can review the proposed penalty notices at the link below.
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