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Are you a fan of windfarms?
Is windpower truly the saviour of world energy economies? WIP’s respected economics
expert, Christopher Hopkins, looks at some of the cost issues behind the green power.
According to current estimates,
worldwide the nameplate capacity
of wind-powered generators is
thought to be about 159.2GW.
Compare that with energy production -
put at 340 TWh - and it represents about
2% of worldwide electricity usage.
Worldwide, several countries have
achieved relatively high levels of wind
power penetration - largely thanks to
hefty governmental subsidies).
For example, broadly speaking around
19% of stationary electricity production in
Denmark is subsidised, 13% in Spain and
Portugal, and 7% in Germany and the
Republic of Ireland. This is out of about
86 countries around the world using wind
power on a commercial basis.
Large-scale wind farms are connected to
the electric power transmission network;
smaller facilities are used to provide
electricity to isolated locations. Utility
companies increasingly buy back surplus
electricity produced by small domestic
turbines.
Wind turbines have grown larger and
taller. Turbines in the 1.5 to 2.5 MW range
have more than doubled their share of the
global market. Not surprisingly, turbine
efficiency has increased and a mixture of
taller turbines, improved components and
better siting has resulted in an overall
efficiency increase of 2 - 3% annually over
the last 15 years.
Investment costs, too, have decreased.
The average cost per kW of installed wind
power capacity currently varies from 900
€/kW to 1,150 €/kW. The turbine itself
comprises about 80% of this total cost.
The remainder is contributed by three
main items - foundations, electrical
installation, grid connection – and then
other costs are land, road construction,
consultancy and financing costs.
The other principal cost element in
generating electricity from wind power is
operation and maintenance. Obviously,
Company
(Currency)
Monthly
share price
52 week
high/low
ABB (CHF) 18.58 15.96/
24.08
Ansaldo (EUR) 13.19 11.77/
15.48
Atlas Copco (SEK) 100.30 63.00/
113.90
Caterpillar (USD) 59.97 30.01/
72.83
Chloride (GBX) 371.50 128.75/
390.50
Cummins (USD) 64.82 31.32/
77.10
Doosan Heavy
Industries (KRW)
Foster Wheeler
(USD)
73900 54100/
97000
20.94 18.33/
35.82
GE (USD) 14.12 10.50/
19.70
John Deere (EUR) 1360 999.00/
1500
Kirloskar (INR) 398.75 240.00/
973.75
MAN (EUR) 68.19 40.22/
73.90
Mitsubishi (JPY) 1826 1552/
2542
MTU Detroit
Diesel (EUR)
44.14 24.67/
50.20
Rolls-Royce (GBX) 551.50 346.50/
631.50
Siemens (EUR) 73.04 45.77/
79.65
Volvo Penta (SEK) 85.35 44.10/
97.40
Wärtsilä (EUR) 37.10 21.20/
39.70
there are no fuel costs.For a new
machine, O&M costs might have an
average share over the lifetime of the
turbine of about 20-25% of total levellised
cost per kWh produced.Wind energy, as an
alternative to fossil fuels, is plentiful,
JULY 2010 • WORLDWIDE I NDEPENDENT P OWER
Change over
month
Monthly figures taken at the end of June 2010
Change
over year
Change since
Jan. 2008
-6.11% +6.60% -33.41%
+8.20% -0.90% +52.66%
-0.39% +42.18% +14.79%
-1.46% +88.94% -16.43%
+32.68% +142.02% +109.59%
-7.11% +89.26% +38.09%
+4.08% +14.93%
-13.04% -4.77% -70.84%
-13.64% +23.21% -60.95%
0.00% -9.33% +10.12%
-54.25% -3.92%
-1.17% +52.52% -16.57%
-6.55% +3.93% -32.87%
-0.65% +67.32% +31.37%
-6.21% +49.46% -13.42%
-1.31% +45.56% -18.29%
+3.20% +73.48% -4.90%
+7.47% +59.16% -14.28%
renewable, widely distributed, clean, and
produces no greenhouse gas emissions
during operation. However - visually - the
construction of windfarms is not
universally welcomed. Perhaps it is
a price worth paying though? WIP