World Wind Watch | Green Energy News

October 9, 2005 – Vol.10 No.29

WORLD WIND WATCH.

Some 55 percent of U.S. homes are heated with natural gas. Some 55 percent of U.S. homeowners will see their gas bills rise by 29 - 44 percent this coming winter compared with the winter of 2004. Blame the hurricanes, the tightening supply of natural gas, and the large number of natural gas fueled powerplants built in the 1990’s when natural gas was $2.00 per million British thermal units(Btu). Today it’s $14.00.

Many of those power plants were built as peaking powerplants meant to come online only at the height of daily electricity consumption, typically afternoon into early evening. Peak hours for electricity usage are also the windiest part of the day and time when wind farms usually come online.

The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) says that wind capacity set to be commissioned by the end of this year could save (or displace) a half billion cubic feet of natural gas per day (Bcf/day) in 2006. (That’s less than one percent of daily consumption.) By the end of 2008 when total U.S. wind generating capacity could reach 15,000 megawatts (up from over 9000 megawatts predicted by the end of 2005) nearly 0.9 Bcf/day of natural gas could be diverted from power plants to U.S. homes.

The AWEA says its easier and quicker to build more wind capacity than build more liquified natural gas terminals. Natural gas used in power generation gobbles up nearly 25 percent of all natural gas delivered to customers. Visit the AWEA at http://www.awea.org/

The first 65 turbines of the 420-megawatt Cape Wind offshore wind farm could be installed in the summer of 2007 if all the remaining permits are obtained. In the following year the other 65 turbines would be installed.

Cape Wind has recently jumped the latest hurdle by getting the thumbs up from the reliability Committee of New England’s independent transmission system operator (ISO-NE) for the interconnection of the project to the power grid owned by NStar Electric and Gas.

With its work done in the siting of the project the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has handed off its oversight Cape Wind to the Minerals Management Service (MMS). MMS oversees other offshore energy projects such as oil and natural gas platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.

Ultimately, MMS will develop and execute an Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Renewable Energy & Alternative Use Program that integrates new uses for federal territory, such as offshore wind farms. Under the recently signed Energy Policy Act of 2005, states can receive up to 27 percent of revenue generated from alternative energy projects up to 3 nautical miles seaward of a state’s submerged lands.

Visit Cape Wind at http://www.capewind.org/ , The Minerals Management Service Offshore Renewable Energy and Alternate Uses website at http://www.mms.gov/offshore/RenewableEnergy/RenewableEnergyMain.htm