Wind Energy is the most common source of renewable energy (together with solar energy). It is very important to understand its advantages in order to be able to fully exploit its potentials.
Wind, like all renewable energy sources, is ultimately powered from the sun. As the sun heats the earth, the warm air rises and the cool air descents to fill in the gap. This unequal redistribution of heat creates the wind. So as long there is sun there will be wind. Moreover, during the power generation there is no pollution to the environment (so called green energy). As a result there are practically unlimited potentials in power generation from wind renewable sources. This is Wind Energy’s major advantage.
Wind power is mainly harnessed throughout the world via the use of wind farms. In most places of the world there is plenty of wind allowing for the efficient generation of electricity from wind farms. However, due to the variation of the speed of the wind the location of the wind farm must be carefully selected. Even though it’s difficult to generate constant level of electricity from a single wind farm throughout the year, with proper planning at a national level, the wind farms can be placed in such locations so that the overall power generation if the country is less variable. The constant power generation levels can be much more accurate if employ a diversified energy mix strategy that combines power generation from other renewable energy sources as well (solar energy, geothermal energy, biomass energy etc). The last few years there is also a lot of development in energy storage capabilities that will allow the extra power generation from renewable energy sources (usually in off peak hours) to be stored for later use.
Another advantage of using wind energy, is the fact that the last 2-3 years investment opportunities in wind energy are a lot more viable first because of the lowered cost of wind turbines (5 times less) and second due to the increase of the efficiency of wind turbines (100 times more efficient). Moreover, investment opportunities are increased due to the aggressive roadmaps of various countries (particularly US, EU and China) in renewable energy investments. US for example, has a roadmap to cover 20% of its power needs by 2030 from wind energy. As a result many countries provide subsidize programs which on some occasions reach 50%.
Most countries now realize the impact power generation from wind energy will have on their economies. First of all, it provides many new job opportunities, but most importantly it allows countries to maintain price stability and become self sufficient as it eliminates the dependency on primary fuels (oil, gas). Wind power generation does not “suffer” from price fluctuations and with proper planning, is practically risk free.
You can find more information on Wind Energy and other renewable energy sources at www.renewablegreenenergypower.com