Energy Biz - July/August 2008 - (Page 68) » Technology FronTier Renewables are Doable Fed Study toutS Wind By dan arvizu Can we Create a future in which a significant fraction of America’s electricity comes from a renewable domestic resource like the wind? The answer is, “Yes, we can.” First, it’s doable. And second, it’s desirable. It’s no longer a discussion of whether renewable energy — and wind in particular — is a viable opportunity. Wind is a clean, inexhaustible, indigenous energy resource, and using more of it will benefit our nation’s security, economy and environment. Coupling the abundant wind resources that flow across our country and the readiness of the marketplace, the opportunity for accelerating the wind industry with next-generation technologies is here. How much wind power can we harness? It is feasible that 20 percent of America’s electricity could come from wind by 2030. Twenty percent in a little more than 20 years is an ambitious goal. That’s as much electricity as nuclear reactors provide, and they have been commercially operating here since 1957. Wind power generates about 1 percent of our electricity today. The good news is that the industry is on a growth spree. Our wind power capacity has experienced a 30 percent annual growth rate over the past five years. In 2007 alone, industry invested $9 billion in wind power, and wind capacity grew by 45 percent. This year promises even more, with $3 billion in new generating capacity installed in the first quarter. As a result of committed research and large-scale investment, the cost of wind energy has NewsFlash declined to about 5 cents a kilowatt-hour today. Nuclear caNisters But to reach “20 percent The U.S. Department of by 2030,” we’ll need to Energy has asked two companies to design install more than 75,000 and build canisters to additional wind turbines transport and store spent nuclear fuel at to produce 300,000 the proposed federal megawatts of power. And Yucca Mountain facility in Nevada. those turbines will have The contracts with to be more sophisticated, NAC International and Areva Federal Services more efficient and, in many last five years and are cases, larger than today’s each worth up to models. $7.3 million. July/August 2008 (Guest opinion) How we can do it is detailed in “20% Wind Energy by 2030,” a new U.S. Department of Energy report. The DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory extensively helped to prepare the study with other national laboratories and 50 organizations. NREL’s Wind Deployment System Model developed by the laboratory’s Strategic Energy Analysis and Applications Center was instrumental in the project. The report makes it clear that we cannot realize the 20 percent scenario through a business-asusual approach. Technology The 20 percent wind scenario will require building the new turbines with improved performance and reliability and reduced operating Dan Arvizu Photo By raymond david/nrEL 68 E n E rgyB i z
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