Special Edition: World Wind Energy Report 2008 (Part 3)

This is part three in the series "Special Edition: World Wind Energy Report 2008" published by the World Wind Energy Association.

Wind energy as a low-risk investment:
In the mid to long term it is clear that wind energy investments will rather be strengthened due to their low-risk character and societal and additional economic benefits. Investment in a wind turbine today means that the electricity generation cost are fixed to the major extend over the lifetime of the wind turbine. Wind energy implies no expenses on fuel and operation and maintenance costs are usually well predictable and rather marginal, in relation to the overall investment.

Employment: Wind energy as job generator
One fundamental advantage of wind energy is that it replaces expenditure on mostly imported fossil or nuclear energy resources by human capacities and labour. Wind energy utilisation creates many more jobs than centralised, non-renewable energy sources. The wind sector worldwide has become a major job generator: Within only three years, the wind sector worldwide almost doubled the number of jobs from 235’000 in 2005 to 440’000 in the year 2008. These 440’000 employees in the wind sector worldwide, most of them highly-skilled jobs, are contributing to the generation of 260 TWh of electricity.

Future prospects worldwide:
Based on the experience and growth rates of the past years, WWEA expects that wind energy will continue its dynamic development also in the coming years. Although the short term impacts of the current finance crisis makes short-term predictions rather difficult, it can be expected that in the mid-term wind energy will rather attract more investors due to its low-risk character and the need for clean and reliable energy sources. More and more governments understand the manifold benefits of wind energy and are setting up favourable policies, including those that are stimulation decentralised investment by independent power producers, small and medium sized enterprises and community based projects, all of which will be main drivers for a more sustainable energy system also in the future.

Carefully calculating and taking into account some insecurity factors, wind energy will be able to contribute in the year 2020 at least 12 % of global electricity consumption. By the year 2020, at least 1’500’000 MW can be expected to be installed globally.

A recently published study by the Energy Watch Group reveals – as one out of four described scenarios – that by the year 2025 it is even likely to have 7'500’000 MW installed worldwide producing 16’400 TWh. All renewable energies together would exceed 50 % of the global electricity supply. As a result, wind energy, along with solar, would conquer a 50 % market share of new power plant installations worldwide by 2019. Global non-renewable power generation would peak in 2018 and could be phased out completely by 2037.

The creation of the International Renewable Energy Agency – which was founded in January 2009 – will act as a catalyst and further speed up the deployment rates of renewable energies: directly through providing know-how to its currently 76 member countries and through acting as a balancing lobby at international decision making processes such as the UN climate change negotiations.

Offshore wind energy:
By the end of the year 2008, 1’473 MW of wind turbines were in operation offshore, more than 99 % of it in Europe, representing slightly more than 1 % of the total installed wind turbine capacity. 350 MW were added offshore in 2008, equalling a growth rate of 30 %.

Dont miss part four in this series. For more information please contact Trevor Sievet at ts@windfair.net