Cleantechnica: Top 10 Wind Power Stories of 2012

10. Floating wind turbines take several steps forward. 

In
various ways, it’s clear that a lot of work is still being put into research and
development of wind turbines. Floating wind turbine news was particularly
noteworthy this year. Here are several notable floating wind turbine stories
from 2012:

9. Wind turbines made of fabric; wind turbines made
of wood; bigger & bigger turbine — wind turbine technology moves forward. 

Some other top wind technology stories this year that were good
examples of wind turbine innovation include:

• DONG Energy & Vestas teaming up in the
  development of an 8-MW wind turbine
• first installation of a 6-MW wind turbine in
  March, followed by installation of another 6-MW wind turbine in
  April
• GE developing wind turbine blades made of
  fabric in order to bring costs down
• a wind turbine tower that is 99.9% made of
  natural timber — aimed at bringing costs down
• news that 50% capacity factor is becoming the
  new normal
• unveiling of the world’s most efficient 1.5-MW
  wind turbine in Europe and in Canada
• a greatly improved 2-MW wind turbine from
  Gamesa

8. Obama administration shows strong support for wind power.

 Obama’s crew at the Department of Energy, Department of Interior, and Bureau of
Ocean Energy Management helped wind power along in several ways this year.
Here’s some of the top news on this front:

• US Atlantic Offshore Wind Energy Bidding
  Proposal Announced By Obama Administration
• Google-backed Offshore Wind Power Superhighway
  Moves Forward
• DOE Launches 6-Year, $180mm Offshore Wind
  Development Initiative
• Obama Administration Approves Mid-Atlantic
  Offshore Wind Farm
• Obama Administration Fast-Tracks 2,500 MW Wind
  Project in Wyoming
• US Department of Interior Authorizes 10,000
  Megawatts of Renewable Power

7. Cape Wind gets closer to actually being built, likely to be 1st
offshore wind farm in US.

Here are some top Cape Wind stories from the
year:

• Massachusetts Approves Cape Wind / NSTAR Power
  Purchase Agreement
• Martha’s Vineyard Fishermen Drop Cape Wind
  Lawsuit
• Another Obstacle Falls as Massachusetts
  Supreme Court Throws Out Cape Wind Challenge
• Cape Wind Moves Forward: Herald of a Boom in
  Offshore Wind, Marine Engineering & Construction?
• Cape Wind Would Reduce Price of Electricity by
  $7.2 Billion, Study Finds
• The War to Build America’s First Offshore Wind
  Farm

6. Australia implements carbon pricing, driving more wind energy
growth in the country. 

Technically, Australia passed its carbon tax legislation in
2011, but it was implemented in mid-2012. As a result of that and
wind power’s low and falling costs, installed wind power has surged this
year.

• Wind Provides Nearly 60% of Energy Demand in
  South Australia (Graphs)
• Australian Electricity Emissions Intensity
  Drops Since Carbon Price

5. Japan implements attractive wind energy feed-in tariff.

Perhaps even more significant than the Australian pricing legislation, Japan’s
feed-in tariff for wind (not to mention for solar or geothermal) is geared at
stimulating some serious wind power growth.

• Japan’s New FITs
• 24.9 GW of Renewable Energy Capacity for Japan
  by 2016?
• Japan Solar, Wind, & Geothermal Feed-in Tariffs
• Renewable Tariffs in
  Japan

4. Wind power costs keep dropping — cheapest option for new
electricity in many places.

Wind power is now the cheapest option for
new electricity in many regions of the world, thanks to years of technological
improvements and market maturation. Meanwhile, the continual improvement of wind
power technology is projected to keep reducing the price of electricity from
wind for years to come. Quite frankly, wind is a winner, and it is going to keep
on winning. Here’s some 2012 news along this front:

• Renewable Energy Most Cost-Effective
  Electricity Option For Millions, IRENA Reports
• Wind Costs Continued To Fall In Past Four
  Years: Report
• Wind Turbine Prices Hit New
  Low
• Wind Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) at
  All-Time Low
• Study: Wind Power Can Save Midwestern
  Consumers $3 to $9.5 Billion Annually by 2020
• Renewables Now Cheaper than Coal in Michigan,
  Could Be $5-Billion Industry
• Wind Cheapest Form of Energy in Kenya and
  Nicaragua
• In Parts of India, Wind Energy Proving Cheaper
  than Coal

It’s also worth remembering that, due to merit-order pricing, wind power
drives down the price of electricity on the wholesale electricity market. Here
are some stories along those lines from 2012:

• Renewables Driving Electricity Prices below $0
  Some Afternoons (& Cutting into Baseload Power Plants’ Market
  Share)
• Wind & Solar Pushing Down Price of
  Electricity in Australia
• Wind Power Lowers Electricity Prices, And
  How

3. Largest wind farm after largest wind farm — wind farm records set
throughout the year. 

From Europe to… well, mostly in Europe, there’s
been quite a bit of news this year regarding record-breaking wind farms.

• The largest onshore wind farm in the
  Europe started producing electricity in Romania this December. It has
  a power capacity of 600 MW.
• The Walney wind farm, which turned on in
  June, is now the largest offshore wind farm in the world.
• The London Array, which is expected to be the
  largest offshore wind farm in the world (once completed), had its first two turbines installed in
  February and then started producing electricity in October. The first phase of the
  wind farm is to total 630 MW, while the completed wind farm is supposed to
  eventually reach a power capacity of 870 MW (an application for the second phase of the London
  Array was submitted in October).
• Meanwhile, also in October, ‘development’ of
  the East Anglia offshore wind farm began, and in December plans for the first 1,200 MW were
  submitted. That beast of a wind farm is projected to eventually be
  7,200 MW, dwarfing the London Array.
• Before the East Anglia offshore wind farm is built, however, the Moray Firth
  wind farm off the Scottish coast, projected to be 1,500 MW in size, could become
  the largest offshore (or onshore?) wind farm in the world. There was strong
  indication this year that construction could begin soon.
• Development of a 996-MW offshore wind farm in
  Germany also began this year. If completed quickly enough, this wind
  farm could potentially become the largest offshore wind farm in the world… we’ll
  see.
• While not as large as these European giants, Central America’s largest wind farm also went
  on-line this year, the 102-MW Cerro de Hula wind farm in
  Honduras.

2. Wind power growing by leaps & bounds around the
world.

Beyond those record-breaking wind farms above, there has been a
ton of other wind power development across this world this year. Here’s a
sampling of stories that highlight wind power’s tremendous growth:

• 88.8% of Brazilian Electricity in 2011 from
  Renewable Sources
• 15.6 GW Of Wind Power In Brazil By
  2021
• China Forecast To Hit 150 GW Installed Wind
  Capacity By 2015
• Wind Power Might Meet 1/5 Of Global
  Electricity Demand By 2030
• 3,725 MW Of Renewable Energy Sought By South
  Africa
• South Africa Approves $5.4 Billion In New
  Renewable Energy Projects
• Share Of Wind Energy In India REC Scheme Has
  Increased By 22% In 2012, Total Capacity Has Crosses 2,000 MW
• Renewable Power Generation In The UK Will
  Surpass Nuclear By 2018, Research Concludes
• Wind & Solar Power = 100% of New U.S.
  Electricity Capacity in September 2012
• Canadian Wind Power Capacity Expected to
  Advance 20% in 2012
• Egypt Adding 750 MW of Wind Projects by
  2014
• Denmark Renewable Energy Generation 40.7% of
  Electricity Produced in 2011, Wind Energy 28.1%
• Denmark Aims to Generate 50% of Electricity
  from Wind by 2020
• Wind Provides Nearly 60% of Energy Demand in
  South Australia (Graphs)
• Korea Ramping Up Wind Power Projects
• 1,000 MW of Wind Power Planned for Uruguay by
  2015
• Scottish Utility Now Has Over 1 GW of Wind
  Power Capacity (& 2 New Wind Farms Planned)
• European Union Wind Power Capacity Reaches 100
  GW!
• 70% of New EU Power from Renewable Energy in
  2011 (47% Solar, 21% Wind)
• Installed Wind Power Capacity Up 21% Globally
  in 2011
• Global Wind Industry to Reach 500 GW by
  2017
• Clean Energy Growth Projections Soooooo Off
  Back in 2000

1. US wind power PTC is… going to be extended?


The extension has been delayed for many months due to GOP
extremists in Congress, sacrificing thousands or even tens of thousands of US
jobs. Some key stories on these and related topics from throughout the year:

• US Veterans Fight For Wind Jobs As Tax Credit
  Hits The Cliff
• Wind Generation Outpacing Natural Gas In US In
  2012
• Texas Grid Sets New Wind Power Record &
  Aims Much Higher
• 8,521 MW Of Wind Power Achieved In Texas
  (Record)
• Clean Energy Scores Highest Documented Rate of
  Return of Any Federal Program
• Report: Mid-Atlantic Offshore Wind Industry
  Could Create 70,000 Jobs, Generate Billions in Revenue
• Overwhelming, Bi-Partisan Senate Finance
  Committee Majority Votes to Extend Wind Power Tax Credits
• +1,100 Jobs & Millions of Dollars for
  Local Economy from 1 Typical Wind Farm
• Phase-Out of the Federal Wind Tax Credit a
  Good Thing?