Vestas installs 50 gigawatts' worth of turbines

Vestas has reached an installed global capacity of 50 gigawatts worth of turbines, providing close to a fifth of total global wind capacity. According to a company statement, the milestone was passed in the first quarter of 2012 with the completion of the 20 megawatt Knared project in Laholm Municipality in Southern Sweden which uses 10 units of Vestas’ V90-2.0 MW turbines.

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Global wind capacity to reach 500 GW in 2016

The global wind power industry will be installing more than 46 GW of new wind energy capacity in 2012 and total capacity will be just under 500 GW in 2016, according to a five-year industry forecast by the Global Wind Energy Council.In the group’s latest report, they project average annual market growth rates of about 8% for the next five years, but with a strong 2012 and a substantial dip in 2013. Total installations for the 2012-2016 period are expected to reach 255 GW, with cumulative market growth averaging just under 16%.

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G.E.’s 1.6-100 turbine makes it to 50-MW Turkish wind farm

The first European installation of G.E.’s 1.6-100 wind turbines will be in Turkey for a project of energy developer Fina Enerji. G.E. will supply 31 of its turbines, which the company says has the highest efficiency of any wind turbine in its class, for the Tayakadin wind project in Istanbul. The project is a 50-megawatt facility which will generate enough electricity to meet the needs of more than 14,000 Turkish households.

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Wind power creating jobs, driving economy – AWEA annual report

According to the American Wind Energy Association, wind power is currently one of the biggest sources of homegrown manufacturing jobs and driver of economic development in the United States. “American wind energy is creating American jobs and affordable electricity all across the country,” said AWEA chief executive Denise Bode as the wind industry group releases the findings of their annual market report for 2011.

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Cape Wind selects contractor for offshore wind farm

In line with plans to begin construction on America’s first offshore wind farm by 2013, Cape Wind announced that they have selected the joint venture between Flatiron Construction Corp., Cal Dive International, Inc. and Cashman Equipment as their contractor. The 468-megawatt Cape Wind project in Nantucket Sound off Cape Cod in Massachusetts is the first offshore wind farm to secure federal and state approval and to be issued a lease to operate by the federal government.

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New England to see $7.2 billion in energy savings from Cape Wind

The 468-megawatt planned Cape Wind facility will reduce electricity prices in New England by $7.2 billion over 25 years. A report prepared by global consulting firm Charles River Associates found that the Cape Wind project has the potential to displace higher-priced fossil fueled power generation, resulting in average savings of $286 million annually when the wind site becomes operational.

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Executive agencies, states form wind consortium for Great Lakes

The Obama administration, through several executive departments, and the federal governments of the Great Lakes states – Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, New York and Pennsylvania – are fast tracking the review process for offshore wind developments in the region.

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Vestas cites reports in wind market leadership

The wind energy sector is riding high winds into a strong future according to several reports released this week, with Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas found to be still at the top of the heap. Vestas cited wind industry research group BTM Consult and renewable energy research group HIS Emerging Energy Research indicating that Vestas maintained their No. 1 position in the wind energy sector.

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First Wind gets $236 million for Hawaii’s largest wind farm deo

The largest wind farm in Hawaii, the 69-megawatt Kawailoa wind project on Oahu’s North Shore, got hold of $236 million in financing this week. United States wind energy company First Wind on Tuesday announced that a subsidiary closed a $220 million non-recourse construction and term loan and another $16 million in letters of credit for the Kawailoa project.

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Global capacity of ‘small wind’ at 440 MW by end of 2010

The total global capacity of small wind turbines stood at 440 megawatts during the end of 2010, states a new report from the World Wind Energy Association. Small wind turbines are defined as falling in the rated capacity range of 6 watts to 300 kilowatts. To date, around 330 manufacturers of such turbines have been identified in 40 countries. The total number of small wind turbines installed all over the world stood at around 656,000 units after the end of 2010, for a total generation capacity of over 382 gigawatt-hours.

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