The British wind energy sector entered a new phase of its history on Tuesday when the first commercial wind farm in the UK was repowered with new, more efficient turbines.
First opened in 1991, the wind farm in Delabole, Cornwall consisted of ten 50 metre high turbines with an annual output of about 12 million KWh, enough to power approximately 2,700 average homes.
According to the wind farm owner, the redevelopment cost €14 million and the four new 100 metre high turbines have a total combined capacity of 9.2 MW, enough to supply around 7,000 homes with electricity. continue reading »
Blue skies, sunshine and the mountains of the Swiss Jura – perfect conditions for visiting a wind farm!
That’s what EWEA’s 17 year old Wiet van Hout from Belgium did last weekend when he collected his prize as one of the winners of the ‘Breath of Fresh Air – adopt a wind turbine’ competition: a trip to Switzerland including a wind farm visit on Mont Crosin. As EWEA’s Campaign Officer, I was lucky enough to go with him.
Sponsored by sol-E Suisse and accompanied by a competent guide, Wiet and his sister Bieke explored the visitors’ centre, the wind turbines from nearby and inside and used the opportunity to question the guide – and me! – about all aspects of wind energy. continue reading »
Wind power and other renewables can play a significant role in a new global “green economy” while also helping mitigate climate change between now and 2050, according to an exhaustive new report released on Monday.
Produced by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the 624-page report identified the energy industry as one of the key sectors that will underpin a green economy.
The report said investing 2% of global GDP into the key sectors “can kick-start a transition towards a low carbon, resource efficient Green Economy” that replaces the “existing, resource-depleting, high carbon ‘brown’ economy” by mid-century. continue reading »
The wind power industry in England has just published a Protocol statement that will see communities living near future onshore wind farms larger than 5 MW realise significant additional economic benefits.
“We, as an industry, are committed to ensuring that a proportion of the benefits delivered by these projects are realised within the communities that live near them,” noted a study by the renewable energy trade association and EWEA member RenewableUK.
The association said on Wednesday that a community benefit scheme will receive support equivalent to a minimum value of at least £1,000 (€1,185) per megawatt of installed capacity annually. continue reading »
A recent survey revealed that renewable energy development comes second as a priority for cooperation between EU Member States after the stability of energy prices. 27% of respondents to a Eurobarometer survey chose renewables as the number one priority, with the group supporting energy price stability just fractionally bigger, at 29%.
And in response to another set of questions, twice as many Europeans thought that in the event of a supply crisis, they would be better protected by coordinated EU rather than national measures (60% against 32%).
Yet this distinction between cooperation priorities is somewhat arbitrary given that renewable energy can and does stabilise prices by providing energy at a knowable cost, unlike oil and gas which have to be imported and whose prices go up and down. continue reading »
The British wind energy sector entered a new phase of its history on Tuesday when the first commercial wind farm in the UK was repowered with new, more efficient turbines.
