The Oil Drum: Europe
It will be the first of several massive wind farms which are larger than 500MW each (meaning they can produce close to 2 TWh of electricity per year), and a price tag in the EUR 1.5-2 billion range. That price can be split roughly in 3 similar-sized bits, being (i) the turbines, (ii) the marine construction work, including the foundations, and (iii) the rest, including development costs, electrical equipment (high voltage transformer station and cables) and, if relevant, financing costs. The size of the different fractions can vary depending on the distance to shore, water depth, site conditions and regulatory framework (in Germany, for instance, you don’t need to build the high voltage export cable as this has to be taken care of by the grid operator).
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Construction typically starts with installation of the foundations, laying of the intra-array cables, and installation of the foundations. The offshore transformer station and main export cable are independent tasks which are typically done as early as possible as their absence prevents the operation of the wind farm – but these are “long lead items” – ie it takes time to order them and build them.
AEE Solar News
April, 2010
New REC Module Delivers More Power per Square Foot
The fourth generation REC Peak Energy Module, the first commercial product to be produced at REC’s new manufacturing facility in Singapore, provides more power per square foot with efficient cell and glass design and an average increase of nine watts per module.
August, 2009
New Article Features AEE Solar Training Director
An article about getting solid solar installation training Solar Training: Choosing a Program that Works based largely on an interview with our Training Director, Jeff Spies, was published in the August 2009 issue of Electronic Products & Solutions.
July, 2009
NABCEP Appoints AEE Solar’s Jeff Spies to Board
We are pleased to report that Jeff Spies, AEE Solar’s Director of Training and Tradeshows, has been appointed the Board of Directors of The North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP).
JBS Solar and Wind Northern Power Systems
THE 2.2 MW Wind Turbine
The Northwind 2.2 uses an innovative permanent magnet generator that is directly coupled to a high-performance rotor with individual blade pitch control. The advanced design of the Northwind 2.2 delivers the performance and reliability advantages of a direct drive configuration with comparable turbine mass, shipping logistics, and installation crane requirements as typical geared wind turbines. The full-rated FlexPhase power converter connects the generator output to the utility grid, and allows the Northwind 2.2 to meet the latest grid interconnect and fault ride through requirements, and allow operation even on weak utility systems.
Arizona Solar and Wind Energy Tax Credit
Arizona taxpayers can claim a credit on their personal state income tax return for the installation of a solar energy device or wind electricity generating system at their residence. The credit is 25% of the purchase and installation cost of the system, up to a maximum credit of $1,000 per residence.
The credit should be claimed for the year the solar or wind generating system was installed. If the amount of the credit exceeds the balance of tax due for the year, the excess credit can be carried forward and applied against future year tax liabilities for up to five years.
Beyond Fossil Fuels: Leon Steinberg on Wind Power: Scientific American
Leon Steinberg of National Wind Image: LEON STEINBERG/NATIONAL WIND
Editor’s note: This Q&A is a part of a survey conducted by Scientific American of executives at companies engaged in developing and implementing non–fossil fuel energy technologies.
What technical obstacles currently most curtail the growth of wind power? What are the prospects for overcoming them in the near future and the longer-term? One of the primary obstacles is balancing electrical generation, load, and storage over time, since wind energy is a variable power source. As more utility-scale wind energy projects are developed across the U.S., the number of wind turbines operating in a given area will increase. This has been shown to inherently reduce wind’s aggregate production variability, making it more predictable and reliable. Experience has also shown that using well-functioning hour-ahead and day-ahead markets and expanding access to those markets are effective tools for dealing with wind’s variability. A deep real-time market is the most economical approach to providing the balancing energy required by wind plants with variable outputs. However, some regions of the U.S. lack centralized markets, so we need to continually pursue ways to provide access to balancing and related services.
SunTrust Plaza
SunTrust Plaza 
Alternative names One Peachtree Center General information Type Commercial offices Location 303 Peachtree Street NE
Atlanta, Georgia Coordinates 33 45′47″N 84 23′13″W / 33.763 N 84.387 W / 33.763; -84.387Coordinates: 33 45′47″N 84 23′13″W / 33.763 N 84.387 W / 33.763; -84.387 Completed 1992 Height Antenna spire 274.9 m (902 ft) Roof 265.48 m (871.0 ft) Technical details Floor count 60 Floor area 487,800 m2 (5,251,000 sq ft) Design and construction Architect John Portman & Associates Developer John Portman & Associates References [1][2][3] SunTrust Building redirects here; for the building in Miami, see SunTrust International Center
SunTrust Plaza is a 265 m (869 ft) 60-story skyscraper in downtown Atlanta. Built as part of the Peachtree Center complex, construction was finished in 1992, and has been the second-tallest building in Atlanta since then. When completed, it was the 28th tallest building in the world, and 21st tallest building in the United States. It is the headquarters for Atlanta’s World Trade Center.
- 1 History
- 2 Recent events
- 3 Gallery
- 4 See also
- 5 References
- 6 External links
[edit] History
Architect and developer John C. Portman, Jr. originally conceived this building in the 1980s commercial real-estate frenzy as a speculative office building. Its basic design elements, a postmodern square tower with an elaborate base and crown, represented a departure for Portman from his earlier International-style work, and are said to have been inspired by Philip Johnson’s wildly successful design for midtown Atlanta’s One Atlantic Center.
Buffalo Ridge Wind Farm
Buffalo Ridge Wind Farm is a large wind farm near Lake Benton, Minnesota that is located on the geological Buffalo Ridge.
- 1 History
- 1.1 Future plans
- 1.2 Birds, bats, and wind turbines
- 2 References
[edit] History
In 1994, a Minnesota legislative mandate increased the demand for wind power in Minnesota. Buffalo Ridge’s geography is well suited for wind power and it has been heavily developed for this purpose. The history of modern wind power activity on Buffalo Ridge can be split into four phases of construction.
In 1994, the first wind farm cluster was built on Buffalo Ridge, northwest of the town of Lake Benton. This first cluster was built by the Kenetech Corporation and runs northwest to Lake Shaokatan; it consists of seventy-three wind turbines.
China rejects US accusation of wind energy protectionism
China’s Ministry of Commerce yesterday rejected allegations from the US that its support for wind turbine manufacturers breaches trade rules, after the Obama administration filed a complaint with the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
In a statement on its web site the ministry said it would study the US request for talks and seek to resolve the dispute in line with WTO rules.
FURTHER READING
Funded Projects
Funded Projects
The Iowa Alliance for Wind Innovation and Novel Development received a $3 million, three-year grant from the Iowa Power Fund, a part of the Iowa Office of Energy Independence.
The $3 million grant was approved to implement research, training and education, and evaluation of testing needs expressed by numerous wind energy companies. Some elements of the grant have an industry match, while all of the elements will serve to further stimulate wind industry development in Iowa.
Third Annual Renewable Energy Finance Forum
During the two-day session, the over 60 speakers and panelists expressed optimism about the U.S. leading the renewable energy industry as well as the available financing strategies for new renewable projects – both public and private – following the recent economic crisis.
“2009 was supposed to be the worst year for renewable energy – it turned out to be the best,” said ACORE President Michael Eckhart. “Against the backdrop of political turmoil and uncertainty about US policy, financial transactions in renewable energy are continuing at a furious pace here in 2010.”
Speakers from leading renewable energy companies, investment institutions, nonprofits and government organizations focused on the U.S.’ need to seize momentum in the marketplace and questioned how to drive the renewable industry forward through policy, funding and commercialization. The overriding theme was that if the U.S. doesn’t act now we risk losing our position as the leader in the renewable energy industry. This was underscored by various speakers, including: