Wind Power – Center of Excellence for Clean Energy

Coal plant to close, transition to wind energy

Posted on Tuesday, May 19, 2020

Great River Energy, a North Dakota electric power supplier which operates as a not-for-profit cooperative, is aiming to purchase over 1,100 MW from new wind energy projects by late 2023, an investment of more than $1.2 billion. It also plans to modify a coal and natural gas-based power plant to be fueled solely by natural gas.

Great River Energy said it planned to shut down two units of Coal Creek Station in the second half of 2022, adding that it was also willing to consider opportunities to sell the plant.

Large-scale, floating offshore wind turbine to be built in the North Sea

Posted on Thursday, April 30, 2020

Plans are underway to build a huge, floating offshore wind turbine in Europe.

Europe is already home to the world’s first floating offshore wind farm, which is located in waters off the coast of Scotland.

Spanish utility Iberdrola is heading a consortium aiming to develop a large-scale floating offshore wind turbine in the North Sea, as the sector looks to drive up the size of technology and push down costs.

The international consortium, made up of firms from Spain, Germany, France, Norway and Denmark, aims to reduce the cost of floating offshore wind energy production.

Construction of the project’s floating platform could begin in the second quarter of 2021, with installation commencing in the first quarter of 2022. Another floating offshore wind project is being planned for Spain, although this will use different technology to that deployed in Norway.

Wind is largest single source of electricity in Iowa

Posted on Wednesday, April 29, 2020

According to the trade association’s Wind Powers America 2019 Annual Report, Iowa is now generating more than 10,000 megawatts of wind energy, accounting for more than 40% of the state’s electricity.

Wind became the leading source of electricity in both Iowa and Kansas this year, making them the first states to reach that benchmark. Previously, coal-fired power generation had been Iowa’s main source of electricity.

Projects in Iowa added the second-most wind power capacity of any state in 2019, behind only Texas.

Wind power plant shuts down amid virus outbreak

Posted on Tuesday, April 28, 2020

An outbreak of Covid-19 at a wind power facility in North Dakota has forced it to temporarily close, the latest example of how the pandemic is impacting the renewable energy sector.

The North Dakota Department of Health said there were 110 confirmed cases of coronavirus in people connected to the LM Wind Power plant in Grand Forks — a total that includes both employees and their close contacts.

The site produces rotor blades for wind turbines and employs 900 people. It closed after eight workers tested positive for coronavirus.

Wind power: Airfoils instead of turbines?

Posted on Monday, April 27, 2020

A new device could open more areas to wind production by using stationary airfoils instead of twirling turbines.

Past efforts to scale down the towering turbines that generate wind power to something that might sit on a home have been plagued by too many technical problems to make such devices practical. Now, however, a new design could circumvent those issues by harnessing the same principle that creates lift for airplane wings.

Known as AeroMINE (Motionless, Integrated Extraction) — the device can pull wind energy from a larger area — the AeroMINE’s rectangular face — than its turbine blades could on their own in a traditional setup.

Learn more: Rooftop Wind Power Might Take Off by Using Key Principle of Flight

Wind surpasses hydro as most used renewable

Posted on Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Wind is now the top renewable source of electricity generation in the country, a position previously held by hydroelectricity.

Annual wind generation totaled 300 million megawatthours (MWh) in 2019, exceeding hydroelectric generation by 26 million MWh. Wind generation has increased steadily during the past decade, in part, because the Production Tax Credit (PTC), which drove wind capacity additions, was extended. Annual hydroelectric generation has fluctuated between 250 million MWh and 320 million MWh in the past decade, reflecting a stable capacity base and variable annual precipitation.

Recycling old wind turbines

Posted on Monday, March 16, 2020

It’s difficult to recycle a gigantic wind turbine. The blades are built to withstand extreme weather, from scorching desert heat to hurricane-like winds, and that means their life almost always ends in a landfill. In Europe alone, about 3,800 blades will be removed every year through at least 2022, according to BloombergNEF, as the oldest turbines reach retirement age.

A Danish startup aims to turn old turbines into a material that can address a different environmental threat: noise pollution.