Wind Energy

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The conversion of the flow of air and other atmospheric gases into the use of power is known as Wind Energy. Dating back to the earliest times in civilization, the use of wind had been used for only a few purposes, either to propel a sailing ship or to be used as a mechanical device, to pump water or to help grind grains.

Wind has also played its part in the mythology and history of the world as we know it. In ancient times, wind was considered the act of gods to the Greeks, while wind is also mentioned in Biblical times as well.

Today’s usage of wind is a little more complex. Used mainly in the generation of electricity, wind energy has become an intrical business in today’s economy.

Known as wind farms, large-scale turbines, usually attached to local power stations, harness the forces of nature into viable, usable energy. As a clean, renewable resource, wind energy has become one of the leading resources favored by environmentalists as an alternative to fossil fuels, as wind can be widely distributed and produces less greenhouse gases.

The wind farm industry can be traced back to 1979, when Danish manufacturers constructed windmills that would generate between 20 and 20 kilowatts each. Today’s industry is much larger in comparison, with a projected capacity of producing wind power energy to reach 160 gigawatts by 2010.

The two leading countries in the production and generating of wind energy are Germany and the U.S. In fact, these two account for more than 81% of all wind farms throughout the world.

In recent years, the U.S. has added more wind energy farms to their power grids than any other country in the world. In 2007, the U.S. produced nearly 17 gigawatts of power, up 45% from the previous year, and also surpassing Germany in capacity production.

With the industry beginning to take a stronger hold within our nation, the use of wind-produced energy increased in 2008 to 1% of all energy used, which equated to powering more than 4.5 million homes nationwide.

The one draw back that wind energy possesses is that wind is not a constant. There is a substantial amount of wind that is not captured by these wind farms, thus indicating that only about half of the available energy from wind is recovered by these turbines.

However, with the recent price of crude hitting then falling from record highs, the price to produce wind energy is now one-fifth the cost it was back in the 1980s. Within the U.S., the price to produce wind energy was estimated to be $55 per megawatt hour, while the cost for coal was $53 per MWh and natural gas was just over $52 per MWh.

The wind industry has proven to be a very lucrative sector. Within the U.S., the government has given tax credits to those constructing and producing wind energy. In 2006, there was a $0.019 credit given for every kilowatt-hour produced.

Not only are there incentives to entice investors into the industry, but the fact that wind energy produces no emissions, has no fuel costs and has little impact on the environment as a whole, the wind industry will surely make its mark within the alternative energy industry.