U.S. wind energy industry needs help from Congress

U.S. wind power capacity experienced growth of 39 percent last year but was not followed with green job growth as uncertainty about renewable energy policies and the global recession slowed overall production.

The total installed capacity of new U.S. wind turbines accounted for more than 9,900 megawatts, which despite the recession is still the significant increase compared to 8,400 MW in the previous year. Total wind power capacity is currently more than 35,000 MW, which is according to the American Wind Energy Association enough to power 9.7 million U.S. homes.

Total U.S. green jobs associated with wind energy sectors haven't increased in the last year due to the recession that took heavy toll on manufacturing, and have stalled at 85,000, which is almost the same number as in 2008. In 2008, wind energy job growth was significant with 35,000 new positions but recession prevented further growth in 2009.

US wind energy map.

In order to add further boost to wind energy sector U.S. will have to convince European wind manufacturers to invest in the United States but Europeans want insurance for their investment in form of new renewable energy policies that should include long-term tax credits and a national mandate for renewable energy.

Wind energy definitely has great potential in US, and it's really no surprise that United States overtook Germany in 2008 as the world's top wind power generator. However China is approaching fast and could soon overtake U.S. in clean energy race mostly because China has already set national clean energy targets which are something U.S. still hasn't done.

U.S. is currently lagging behind China in clean energy race and without the adequate legislation, and national renewable energy policy the difference will be even bigger. Many expect that things will change for better once Congress passes national mandates for generating renewable power, which are expected to be included in a compromise climate bill to be considered by the Senate this year

If U.S adopts national renewable electricity mandates investors would likely put more money into building transmission lines to carry more wind from the gusty center of the country to cities with high power demand, giving great boost to total U.S. wind energy sector.

Wind energy sector - Wind energy development

Wind energy isn't something brand new, and as many of you probably know that wind energy use (windmills) has very long history of using it. If we look at the data for United States in 2008 we can see that twenty-two states have come up with the plans for the installation of 1650 windmills in the United States. Current estimates say how by 2014, wind power industry expected to rapidly increase its growth, with today's around 6,500 megawatt-hours to expand to more than 28,000 megawatt-hours in five years time. Wind power industry is currently making an annual of $3 billion market. It is expected that this amount will more than double in the next two years because of lot of new wind energy projects that will soon start to be built across the whole United States. This can clearly give you an idea of how wind energy has developed over the years.


Many energy experts see bright future for offshore windmills. Offshore windmills are even now becoming more and more dominant in the wind energy industry, and the years ahead should ensure their total dominance on wind energy sector. Why are offshore wind energy projects becoming so popular? The main reason for this that oceans are experiencing far stronger winds to the one that blow on land, and the stronger the winds the more electricity we can generate. Much work and constant development in installation of windmills on sea platforms have made the wind energy much more efficient and what is also important more transferable. Wind energy projects are now measured in megawatts capacities compared to wind energy projects in past that were capable only to generate power in kilowatts.

The stronger the winds are the wind turbines spin faster, and offshore turbines therefore spin much faster compared to the ones on the land and most importantly they are far more reliable because they are much more stable compare to in land installed turbines due to constant winds that blow on oceans. As the wind energy sector is constantly experiencing growth this would also mean big things for economy because this expanding energy sector will ensure new jobs for many people, so wind energy sector could be also used to at least partially ensure jobs to the people that lost their jobs in recession. The wind energy sector is expected to achieve large growth in a near future which includes manufacturing and engineering, environmental management, consulting, and marketing determinants of wind energy. All of these should create thousands of new jobs, and help boos U.S. economy even further.

Wind energy sector:
1. Wind energy development (current)
2. How does the wind energy generate electricity? (next)
3. Wind power costs
4. Conclusion

Wind energy sector - How does the wind energy generate electricity?

The main purpose of each energy source is to generate electricity needed for our homes as well as for different industrial facilities. Current popularity of wind energy sector and tendency of many people to ensure green energy source to provide electricity for their homes have resulted in wish of many homeowners to have wind energy system installed, of course when possible.

This is not only because wind energy is ecologically acceptable renewable energy source that should help us fight climate change and other environmental problems but moreover because it helps homeowners and even commercial facilities to eliminate major electric expenditure. Wind energy can even be installed to uninhabited places, and since it does not emit any harmful particles or greenhouse gases its use is completely safe, even form environmental point of view. The only thing that could be seen as the disadvantage of wind energy from environmental point of view is that wind turbines can cause some visual and noise pollution, but this environmental disadvantage definitely does not look half as big threat to environment as for instance fossil fuels do.


The amount of energy generated by a wind turbine depends on the speed of the wind. What is we increase speed of the wind how much more energy would this give to us. Well wind energy is definitely specific from this point of view, and so doubling the wind speed results in 8 times more power while tripling the wind speed means 27 times more power. As you can see these are more than justified reasons why most wind energy projects tends to be oriented on offshore wind projects where wind has the highest speed, therefore producing most power. In order to be economical, wind speeds in a given place must be at least 4-5 m/s, otherwise cost of building wind power plant will be too big, and not economically viable. Also wind energy projects tend to have greater length of the blades because the greater the length of the blades the more power wind turbine will generate. If we double the blade length we will increase the power four times, and if we triple the blade length there will be 9 times more power.

This stated above definitely points out that wind energy is mostly guided by different physical principles. Basically the blades harness energy from the wind, and then transform it into electrical energy. It has to be also said that some turbines can utilize wind blowing without any mechanical direction, but there are very few of those. You should definitely be always aware of choosing the appropriate site construction for wind energy system, an area that has to not only ensure constant blowing of the wind but also an adequate speed of the wind to make project economically viable. If you meet these two criteria they you definitely give wind energy sector a go because it will not only give you lower electricity bills, but it would also mean that you're actually doing something good for our planet.

Wind energy sector:
1. Wind energy development (previous)
2. How does the wind energy generate electricity? (current)
3. Wind power costs (next)
4. Conclusion

Wind energy sector - Wind power costs

People as always when starting new energy projects, regardless whether they are renewable or not want to know the actual costs of these projects before deciding on them. What I need to say first is that wind energy costs are in reality a significant attraction to homeowners, especially when they discover how cheaply they can build their own wind turbines with commonly available materials.

Wind energy is used on large scale in some countries for generating electricity such as Germany and Denmark. The consequence of this was huge drop in costs of wind energy in the last two decades by an incredible 80 percent. Wind power cost has decreased from 30 cents per kilowatt-hour to around 5 cents per kilowatt-hour today, and wind energy is something that definitely deserves to be more exploited.

Wind power cost has decreased. Click on picture for full size.

Many would be probably asking themselves what were the reasons behind this huge decrease in wind power costs. This can be mostly attributed to the development of better wind energy systems that are being utilized to capture the energy of wind with far more efficiency compared to past wind energy projects.

Wind energy systems relatively low costs have also helped in decreasing our dependence on the traditional fossil fuels. Use of wind power plants is environmentally friendly, and helps to keep the general environment clean with constantly present supply of clean, inexpensive energy, that can be transmitted to many homes across not only United States, but world in general.

Wind energy cost reductions are achievable with the help of smart financing methods. The cost of wind power falls significantly if it is a sponsor owned plant. If it is owned by an individual investor, the cost per kilowatt-hour will obviously be significantly bigger but the residential home owner shouldn't be too worried about this since today small wind generators (enough to supply electricity to household needs) can be built very cost effectively.

If you look for the price of large wind energy units you should be aware that their prices are in range from 1 to 2 million dollars. But you should also have in mind the capacity of these large wind energy units since they are capable of powering approximately 150-250 homes which could in the end turn out to be very profitable project after only several years of using it.

Costs are not everything you should be looking at when thinking about building your personal win energy project. You should make sure to estimate your energy requirements before you select a wind turbine to build.

If you are a homeowner, a wind turbine is available in the price range of $20,000 to $40,000. However, building your own wind generator will seem to many as much better option, especially since you can now find much info about it if you Google the web, or consult with people that have already done these projects

In the end, I would definitely advise you if you plan to go for wind turbine to try to build your own wind turbine. As some calculations suggested you can save two thirds of the money by buying parts and assembling them yourself compared to buying finished project. So much saved money definitely deserves to give more thought to it.

Wind energy sector:
1. Wind energy development
2. How does the wind energy generate electricity? (previous)
3. Wind power costs (current)
4. Conclusion (next)

Wind energy sector - Conclusion

Obviously, the entire world needs energy and the energy demand is constantly growing. Non renewable energy looks to be slowly but surely losing its dominance, and some innovative ideas in technology have really helped boosting some renewable energy sources it he last five years or so, most notably solar and wind energy. By using wind energy instead of conventional one based on fossil fuels, you will be able to not only decrease your electricity bills but you'll also help our planet recover from pollution and climate change problem.

Homemade wind energy system is not something completely new. We are talking about something that has been used for thousands of years. Homeowners who have decided to save energy by going green are on the right path by choosing wind energy systems. So if possible for you should definitely consider installing wind turbine at home.


Ordinary windmill is sufficient enough to provide energy for household operations. In times when emphasis on clean environment has become tendency of many people wind energy definitely looks to be the right choice for many house owners that want to go green, and help doing something for our environment. Many people see in wind power system energy solution that doesn't harm our environment, and this is the reason why they go for it. Of course the low costs are quite helpful too.

Wind energy project once built require little maintenance, and wind turbines do not interfere with electrical or transmission signals. There are really lots of ways in order to save money by using wind energy system at your home. It is up to you to make the right decision.

Wind energy sector:
1. Wind energy development
2. How does the wind energy generate electricity?
3. Wind power costs (previous)
4. Conclusion (current)