EnergyBiz - January/February 2008 - (Page 4) » oUR take from Malawi to Texas – a World of Possibilities featured the story of William Kamkwamba of Malawi. Kamkwamba, 20, is intent on providing electricity to his country “one windmill at a time.” He has started with three, putting them together with plastic pipes and bicycle parts – and anything he can get his hands on. One provides electricity for a television, radio and ten small light bulbs in The Danes’ early success with Middelgrunden in Copenhagen harbor his family home. Local villagers use it to charge cell phones. He has proved the potential of offshore wind generation. The 20 turbines were installed in 2000. become a local hero – with reason. Jeannot Boussougouth, energy analyst with Frost & Sullivan, is an expert on the energy needs of Africa. The continent’s firms, including several well-entrenched Danish players. electricity supply industry is expected to require investMeanwhile, the United States is the world’s largest ment of $563 billion over the next two decades. [See market for wind turbines and ready for explosive growth. page 14] Consider Texas. One Danish scientist told me that an Kamkwamba is now receiving a fine education in area 1.5 times the size of the Lone Star state could Malawi’s capital, and perhaps he will one day become generate sufficient wind power to power the world. Of part of a massive campaign to attack endemic African course, putting adequate globesuffering and poverty with new yOu arE inviTED TO rEaD My straddling transmission in place power technologies. Wind power BLOg EvEry FriDay aT could be a challenge could well play an important role, www.energyblogs.com/rosenberg Legendary Texas oilman and since it is becoming increasingly corporate raider T. Boone Pickens easy to put small wind turbines close knows wind’s potential. [See page 12] The Burns & to where electricity is needed. McDonnell engineering firm is helping him develop a In this country, there is some stubborn skepticism $10 billion, 4,000-megawatt wind farm. TXU and Shell about the potential of wind power. You can get a good have teamed up on a $4.8 billion, 3,000-megawatt wind debate going even in the Aurora, Colo. offices of Energy project, also in the Texas Panhandle. They would be the Central, parent of EnergyBiz. Wind is intermittent and, at world’s biggest wind farms. least in America, seems to blow more abundantly in the As Texans and Danes race ahead, the rest of the world wrong places far from population centers. watches and wonders about the possibilities. While the arguing continues, facts on the ground are Back in Malawi, Kamkwamba’s mother now knows fast accumulating. Denmark has declared it intends to get something about wind power. “Our lives are much half of its electricity from wind power in the near future. happier now,” she said. I recently traveled to the country to learn more about whether such goals are achievable and exportable. Denmark is not America. But it is a national lab where new wind turbines can be tested and adaptation of the power grid to widespread use of the devices can be perfected. Denmark has spent many decades investing in development of wind technology. That in turn has sparked the growth of companies like Vestas and LM Glasfiber, which are ready and intent on conquering fast-developing world markets for wind. GE is a major player, but the American JOin a cOMMuniTy OF BLOggErs DaiLy aT www.energyblogs.com manufacturer faces robust competition from many foreign The FronT page oF the Wall Str eet Jour nal r ecenTly 4 E n E rgyB i z January/February 2008 http://www.energyblogs.com/rosenberg http://www.energyblogs.com
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