Posted on 07/07/2015 12:31:16 PM PDT by newgeezer
The cost of wind energy is significantly more expensive than its advocates pretend, a new US study has found.
If you believe this chart produced by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), then onshore wind is one of the cheapest forms of power – more competitive than nuclear, coal or hydro, and a lot more than solar.
But when you take into account the true costs of wind, it’s around 48 per cent more expensive than the industry’s official estimates – according to new research conducted by the University of Utah.
(Excerpt) Read more at breitbart.com ...
Stick to the facts. Otherwise, you look foolish.
UPW ping!
Yeah, but they’re cool. I have a miniature turbine spinning away on my window sill at work.
When I was in Germany a few weeks ago.
There are wind turbines EVERYWHERE.
And maybe half of them are working at any given time...
If you look at the chart for land-based wind, it comes out cheaper or equal than all but NG and Hydro
Seems pretty good on land if that is accurate
The numbers have really shifted. Not too many years ago I read that an older and paid for coal fired power plant could sell power at $20/mwhr. Everything seems to be much higher now.
Wind turbine shave taken over most of the entire northeast corner of Colorado. I fly in that area and just after takeoff in Denver you can see a sea of light spanning the northern east side through the northern area of Colorado. It is simply stunning to see so many lights. What’s worse is that they all flash in sequence. Thousands of lights all blinking red at the same time. They have now encroached on several airports such that any low approach is dangerous.
Wind turbines, privately owned, operated, and maintained on farms or ranches can be practical.
It’s a US Govt study for crying out loud.
If they are comparing, say a coal plant at 100% vs. a wind plant at 100% they can get these numbers.
But a coal plant can generate 90% of the time, a wind plant perhaps 30% of the time as it is not consistently windy. So the capital cost has to be paid off at a rate 3x higher than the coal plant.
Time is money. It takes three years to generate the equivalent megawatt hours as the coal plant. Factor that into the cost and wind becomes a joke.
Kills more birds than hunters ever could.
Denmark now gets 18% of its energy from wind. But it’s carbon output has increased by 36%. The unintended consequence is running coal plants in their inherantly dirty spin up cycle every morning. (Wind generates mostly at night)
The true lifecycle cost of nuclear power is misrepresented on that chart... it’s a money pit of corporate welfare government handouts like you would not imagine.
I have often driven by the wind farms that blight the landscapes in the Midwest and seen not a single windmill blade moving. Wind turbine not only are dependent on the wind to blow, but the wind must be in a narrow range of speeds. Too slow and no electricity is generated despite turning blades. Too fast and the windmills must be shut down least they self destruct. During the winter the hydraulic systems governing the windmills must be electrically heated. Windmills can also be shut down by icing of the blades. At theoretical best no more that about 30% of the wind energy can be captured and real averages are in the 20-25% range. For reliable and cost effective electricity production windmills are a joke.
Curious - really: how often do birds die running into other things besides turbines (or each other)?
Perhaps wind turbines are weeding out the stupid, slow birds.
(just saying...)
What is that "narrow" range, typically? I'm guessing 10-to-60 MPH, maybe higher.
During the winter the hydraulic systems governing the windmills must be electrically heated.
That's interesting. I'm trying to verify that but coming up empty.
A couple of years ago I read a report that the Texas windmill system(largest in the country) had a utilization rate of only 5%. Pretty stupid, eh? The damn things are hideous as far as I am concerned.
I have been unable to find that specific report lately. It was either a state issued or state funded report and has probably been “erased” along with the IRS files. Or maybe buried under the Titanic for safe keeping.
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