Further innovation in onshore wind power technology could see its unsubsidised development costs cut in half by 2030, according to a new report backed by the US Department of Energy (DOE) released earlier this month. Despite the President Trump’s insistence on rejuvenating the US coal industry, the latest research by his energy department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) suggests wind power could in fact be one of the cheapest forms of energy generation in the US within the next 10-15 years, beating even natural gas-fired power. Last year, the US wind industry benefitted from an estimated $14bn in new investments, according to the report, with wind power supplying just over 5.5 per cent of US electricity generation in total. Continued US investment in the industry could see its levelised installation and operation costs tumble to just $23/MWh or below by 2030, the report suggests, bolstering its potential as a major low-cost energy source. Under such a scenario, wind energy deployments could increase to more than 200GW of capacity by 2030 and 500GW by 2050, supplying as much as 20 per cent and 47 per cent of US electricity respectively.
Business Green 31st Aug 2017 read more »
