The wind energy industry has made rapid boom in recent years. While the global installed wind power capacity in 1998 amounted to little more than a total of 10.000 MW in 2005 had already reached 60.000 MW. The number is expected to rise to 150.000 MW by 2012.
In 2003 alone, new wind turbines were installed worldwide in wind power production capacity of more than 8.300 MW. The third of those in Germany, the third in the rest of Europe, and the other in the world. Europe will remain the driving force in the global wind market over the next 5 to 10 years.
The main reason for this rapid growth is the relatively low cost of wind energy compared with other renewable energies. Indeed, the cost of such technology is very close to that of energy production from fossil fuels, which paves the way for the deployment of wind energy worldwide.
Thanks to advances in technology, the specific cost of wind power has fallen by half since 1990, and it is expected that the difference between the cost of wind power and energy costs from fossil fuels will continue to decline.
Huge potential
The global wind energy potential is enormous. Only the theoretical potential sites with average wind speed of at least 5 m / s at a height of 10 meters, is set at least 500.000 TWh / a electricity per year. This equates to 35 times more energy than the global electricity consumption today.
Wind and preserve the natural environment
During the operation of a wind farm is not emitted carbon dioxide or other gases that pollute the atmosphere (carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, carcinogenic particles, etc.), as happens with conventional power plants. Throughout its use, and only a 1,5 MW wind turbine can save approximately 80,000 tons of mineral coal (brown coal). This means that not only intensifies the greenhouse effect (each kilowatt hour generated by wind farms means to prevent release of one kilogram of CO2 in the atmosphere), but there are no negative consequences to public health from air pollution. At the same time, more than 90% of the area hosts a wind farm is available for other uses, when other activities such as rural can coexist with the installation.
However, no human construction activity that has no effect on the environment. The siting of wind farms must be careful and be accompanied by the corresponding environmental impact assessment (EIA) of the project so as to ensure smooth integration into the local environment and to minimize their impact on biodiversity. If the siting of wind turbines are not designed properly, there might be negative consequences for biodiversity such as problems may arise in birds if the wind turbines installed in major migratory routes or destruction of important habitat boring because of auxiliary roads