Wind Power Industry to Strengthen in 2007
The U.S. wind energy industry is on track to install over 3,000 MW of wind power generating capacity nationwide in 2007, with Texas likely to account for about two thirds of the new installations, the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) said recently in its first quarter market report.
The U.S. wind energy industry is on track to install over 3,000 MW of wind power generating capacity nationwide in 2007, with Texas likely to account for about two thirds of the new installations, the
American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) said recently in its first quarter market report.
Over 100 MW have newly come online in the U.S. so far this year, and over 1,000 more are under construction in Texas alone, according to AWEA. One megawatt of wind power produces enough electricity on average to serve 250 to 300 homes.
Texas is today the state with the largest amount of wind power in operation, providing income to rural communities, new business and jobs, as well as clean, renewable energy for its economy.
A report by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas suggests that the 2,000 MW of new wind power anticipated this year would avoid over 3 million tons of CO 2, annually, at a rate of about 0.48 tons of CO 2 per MWh of wind — reducing the carbon footprint of every person in Texas by more than 250 pounds per year.
Along with Texas, 22 other states now have a renewables portfolio standard (RPS), and given the economic success of the policy and the urgency of addressing global warming, several have recently moved to strengthen their requirements. A RPS uses market mechanisms to ensure that a growing percentage of electricity is produced from renewable sources.
Recently, New Mexico and Colorado both increased their renewable energy requirement to 20 percent by 2020, and Minnesota adopted an RPS of 25 percent by 2025.
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