Coastal wind shows potential
By Kristyn Ecochard Jul 16, 2007, 23:18 GMT
WASHINGTON, DC, United States (UPI) -- In many parts of the country, there are renewable portfolio standards and in the Northeast and West there are surging electricity prices driving the wind industry. However, where neither of those exists strongly, in the South, utilities are driving renewables like wind.
The Georgia Tech Strategic Energy Institute recently finished a study on the Feasibility for Offshore Wind Power in the Southeast.
'We continue to believe that renewable energy resources, including wind, need to be a part of our energy supply portfolios. We will continue to pursue this and other renewable energy options that allow us to provide reliable and affordable electricity to our customers,' said Leonard Hayes, Southern Company`s executive vice president for supply technologies, renewables and demand-side planning.
Working with local utility Southern Company, the project began in 2005 to research alternative energy options that would stimulate economic opportunities for the coastal regions of Georgia. The two groups studied the potential of wind power off the east coast of Georgia. Southern Company was brought on board specifically to perform a detailed conceptual design study for an offshore wind farm.
SEI`s research suggests there are few wind turbine providers that produce a product able to withstand the harsh coastal conditions, and because demand is so high in Europe, turbines would be difficult to come by.
To observe the wind conditions off the coast in the South Atlantic Bight region, SC installed several anemometers. One was 35 miles offshore, 88 feet deep and 164 feet tall; another was 10 miles offshore, 49 feet deep and 108 feet tall. Average wind speeds for the area measured 7 meters per second, a class four measurement, over a six-year test period.
Shallow waters, moderately high average wind speeds of 16 or 17 mph, existing electrical substations and low visibility all make the areas of Georgia`s coast ideal for wind turbines, according to the latest findings released by Georgia Tech`s SEI and SC.
While the wind power potential was strong, there are still concerns over cost and availability of turbines, effects on marine life, military radar interference, lightning strikes and hurricanes.
Findings of a study by the U.S. Department of Energy said there are more than 900,000 megawatts of potential wind power generation within 50 miles of U.S. coasts, nearly the equivalent of the current total installed electric capacity in the United States. Capturing the offshore potential would help meet the demand of the 28 coastal states that use roughly 78 percent of U.S. electricity.
In Massachusetts, the Cape Wind project recently released a statement claiming its data towers collected information suggesting strong winds on peak-demand days.
The report, 'Comparison of Cape Wind Scientific Data Tower Wind Speed Data with ISO New England List of Top Ten Electric Demand Days,' suggests that if Cape Wind were online, it would have generated 321 megawatts per hour during the last 10 high-demand days.
'By producing an average of 321 megawatts during these times of peak electricity demand, Cape Wind would have a meaningful impact on enhancing electric reliability, improving air quality, providing greater energy independence and lowering energy costs,' said Jim Gordon, Cape Wind president.
Cape Wind said previous U.S. government reports suggested that it would have been generating at full capacity had it been online during a three-day freeze in January 2004.
'These reports together demonstrate that Cape Wind would be providing substantial power when New England needs it the most, during the hottest and coldest days,' Gordon said.
The U.S. Department of Interior`s Mineral Management Service released its 'Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for Alternative Energy Development and Production and Alternate Use of Facilities on the Outer Continental Shelf' in March.
Its findings suggested offshore wind power would likely have 'negligible to minor' impact on the environment, though there was some concern over marine life migratory paths and possibly collisions that could cause oil spills.
'Provided regulatory and technological hurdles can be overcome and the communities we serve favor this approach, we will continue to explore developing both off- and on-shore wind energy for our customers,' Hayes said.
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