and here's the wind info from Robert Marston on 1/16/08. I added the pics.
1/16/08
"One other point -- wind energy is already cost competitive when compared to oil. The amount of electrical energy in a barrel of oil is approximately 700 kw(h). If the cost of a barrel of oil is $100 dollars the the cost of one kilowatt is 14 cents. At approximately 6 cents per kw(h) wind is far less expensive than oil. In other words, wind is a more valuable form of energy because it costs less to produce. For wind and oil to be of equivalent value, it needs to cost about $40 per barrel.
What has happened is, through political and economic manipulation, the world has become addicted to oil. So oil can command a higher price for our addiction.
But how valuable would oil be if we could run our cars on wind generated electricity? I bet we'd see $20 a barrel again real quick. Better yet, we wouldn't have the ridiculously distorted geopolitical situation, risk of war, and massive ongoing environmental damage.
My cynical view is that wind and solar power is too easy to produce, in the long run, for the capitalists to stomach. Once economies of scale set in it's tough to enforce scarcity. What you end up with is an energy break out that's difficult to control. As far as I'm concerned, renewables = energy independence and security for the world population. Cheap, clean, safe and peaceful for as far as we can see into the future. All we need to do now is build it.
- Cost of one 3.6 MW wind turbine = approx $90 million dollars.
- Amount of energy produced by one 3.6 MW wind turbine in one year in a high wind resource area (intermittence factored in) = 15,000 MW(h).
- Total cost of world oil infrastructure = approx 3 trillion dollars.
- Total oil output in one year = approx 74 mbpd C+C.
- Optimistic lifetime of 74 mbpd C+C production = approx 10 years.
- Cost of 500,000 3.6 MW wind turbines = approx 3 trillion dollars (current cost does not factor in economy of massively scaled production).
- BOe output of 500,000 3.6 MW wind turbines = 40 mbpd (BOe).
- Optimistic lifetime of 40 mbpd BOe electricity production = indefinite.
- Efficiency gain of electric engines vrs ICE = 2 to 1.
- Total BOe from 500,000 3.6 MW wind turbines with electric engine efficiency gain = 80 mbpd (BOe + efficiency gain).
- Cost of saving the planet from runaway global warming = Priceless.
- Cost of saving this generation from a decline of modern civilization brought about by Peak Oil = Priceless.
- Cost of saving one soldier's life by bringing him home from Iraq = Priceless.
- Cost of making the US energy independent again = Priceless.
- Total Cost of War in Iraq to date = 1.2 trillion dollars.
- Total Cost of building enough Wind Generating Capacity in the US to replace 10 mbpd of imported oil in equivalent energy = approx 400 billion dollars with efficiency gains factored in.
Need I continue...
Looking at the above analysis, you can make a pretty strong case of wind vrs oil NOW. Look for solar to have a similar strength in the future. As for folk who say wind is too costly... With oil breaking $100 per barrel, they don't have much of a leg to stand on. Put oil at $150 dollars per barrel and it's more expensive than equivalent solar energy.
Perpetual Energy on February 14, 2008 - 11:25pm |
