Harnessing offshore wind would be cheaper for the U.S. than continuing to drill for oil and gas off the Atlantic coast and it would also create more jobs, according to a new report issued this week.

An analysis by Oceana, an international organisation focused on ocean conservation, also found that a modest investment in offshore wind could supply almost half the current electricity generation on the East Coast.

The report, called “Untapped Wealth: The Potential of Offshore Energy to Deliver Clean, Affordable Energy and Jobs,” noted that the disastrous consequences of the April oil rig explosion and leak in the Gulf of Mexico underscore the high costs of heavy U.S. reliance on fossil fuels.

IEA members

New figures from the International Energy Agency (IEA) show that wind energy is covering an impressive slice of the national electricity demand in countries around the world.

No stranger to being top of the wind energy league, in 2009 Denmark still showed the way with wind energy covering 19.3% of the national electricity demand. Coming in a surprise second on the IEA list is Portugal – last year wind covered 15% of the country’s electricity demand.

Portugal’s Iberian neighbour, Spain, falls third with 14.4% of the electricity demand met by wind power. Fourth and fifth position were awarded to Ireland and Germany with 10.5% and 6.5% respectively.

Mexico’s government and private investors are working together to set the stage for a rapid and radical increase in the amount of wind power in the country of 111 million people.

According to a recent report in RenewableEnergyWorld, spokesmen for the Mexican wind industry are predicting the still small power-generating sector is aiming to increase by six times its installed capacity by 2014.

Aided by new government incentives, the story notes the wind energy sector could expand within three years its installed capacity — at a cost of about $5 billion — to 3,000 MW from the current 500 MW.

In an article published this month in Power and Energy, Christian Kjaer argues that in order to stimulate an internal electricity market in Europe, a ‘fifth freedom’ – the freedom of movement of electricity – needs to be instated quickly. Read the full article by clicking on the link below…

Power and Energy article

Wind power received another high-profile vote of confidence recently in Ohio, USA with the news that a Toyota car dealership has decided to power part of its commercial enterprise with wind energy.

George Kauffman, vice president of George Byers and Sons, told a local television station he hopes the dealership’s 25-metre-tall wind turbine sets an example for other businesses that also want to mitigate their environmental footprints.

“It’s the future of how our children are going to live, it’s going to lower our carbon footprint and keep it a better, cleaner world for everyone,” Kaufman was quoted as saying by 10TV.