GRA
Well-known member
Via GCC:
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2015/08/20150810-doewind.htmlDOE: US wind power capacity grew 8% in 2014 to ~66 GW, 2nd in world; meets 4.9% of end use demand; lowest prices to date
According to the 2014 Wind Technologies Market Report released today by the US Department of Energy (DOE) and its Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, total installed wind power capacity in the United States grew at a rate of 8% in 2014 and now stands at nearly 66 gigawatts (GW)—ranking second in the world (to China) and meeting 4.9% of end-use electricity demand in an average year.
Wind power represented 24% of U.S. electric-generating capacity additions in 2014. Since 2007, wind power has represented 33% of all US capacity additions. With utility-scale wind energy projects installed in 39 States and Puerto Rico, the US wind sector supports more than 73,000 jobs, representing a 30% job market increase over 2013.
Additionally, 2014 ushered in some of the lowest wind energy prices ever, falling to 2.35 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) for Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), which accounts for a 66% decline since 2009, when prices topped out at nearly 7 cents per kWh.
Wind turbines originally designed for lower wind speed sites have rapidly gained market share. With growth in average swept rotor area outpacing growth in average nameplate capacity, there has been a decline in the average “specific power” (in W/m2) over time, from 394 W/m2 among projects installed in 1998–1999 to 249 W/m2 among projects installed in 2014.
Along with growing rotor diameters, turbine nameplate capacity and hub height have also increased significantly over the long term. With capacity factors now averaging 33%, up from 30% in 2000, wind turbines are converting a higher amount of wind into wind energy at a lower price. The average nameplate capacity of newly installed wind turbines in the United States in 2014 was 1.9 MW, up 172% since 1998–1999.
The average hub height of newly installed wind turbines in 2014 was 82.7 meters (m), up 48% since 1998–1999, while the average rotor diameter was 99.4 m, up 108% since 1998–1999. Rotor scaling has been especially significant in recent years, and more so than increases in nameplate capacity and hub heights, both of which have seen a stabilization of the long-term trend in recent years. In 2008, no turbines employed rotors that were 100 m in diameter or larger; by 2014, that percentage was 80%.
