02/02/2009
Brazil: Wind power steps in when rivers for hydro power production dry up
Wind power is providing a vital service for Brazil's electricity supply system by balancing out periods when the country's hydro power plants are struggling to meet demand.
Over 85% of the Brazilian demand for electricity is met by large hydroelectric power stations. In the dry season, however, storage capacity can drop dangerously low. Wind power can compensate for this because the wind is strongest at exactly the same time of year.
This is one of the main reasons behind the Brazilian government's PROINFA incentive programme for renewable energy. PROINFA (Programme of Incentives for Alternative Energy Sources) supports the construction of wind farms by offering long term contracts for their electricity output at a premium price.
The first large scale wind farm to be built under PROINFA was at Rio do Fogo in the north-east of Brazil. With a capacity of 49 MW, it was constructed and is operated by Enerbrasil, a subsidiary of the Spanish power company Iberdrola Renovables.
The Rio do Fogo wind farm not only helps Brazil's national power supply balance, but it also saves 37,000 of CO2 every year.
The national Eletrobras power utility, which administers the PROINFA programme, expects up to 1,200 MW of wind power capacity to be commissioned under the scheme. Operating wind capacity in Brazil at the end of 2008 was 342 MW, the largest of any Latin American country.
"There's a tremendous potential for wind power in Brazil," says Lauro Fiuza, President of the Brazilian Wind Energy Association, ABEEolioca. "It also works very well in partnership with the existing hydro capacity. Our expectations are very high for the future."
Rio do Fogo wind farm is the third in a series featured on the "Wind Power Works" website - www.windpowerworks.net - to emphasise the benefits that wind power brings around the world.
Danish Wind Industry Association
Rosenørns Allé 9, 5
Rune Birk Nielsen
Head of Press
DK-1970 Frederiksberg C
Tel: (+45) 3373 0339 - Fax: (+45) 3373 0333
Mob: (+45) 6133 3653
Over 85% of the Brazilian demand for electricity is met by large hydroelectric power stations. In the dry season, however, storage capacity can drop dangerously low. Wind power can compensate for this because the wind is strongest at exactly the same time of year.
This is one of the main reasons behind the Brazilian government's PROINFA incentive programme for renewable energy. PROINFA (Programme of Incentives for Alternative Energy Sources) supports the construction of wind farms by offering long term contracts for their electricity output at a premium price.
The first large scale wind farm to be built under PROINFA was at Rio do Fogo in the north-east of Brazil. With a capacity of 49 MW, it was constructed and is operated by Enerbrasil, a subsidiary of the Spanish power company Iberdrola Renovables.
The Rio do Fogo wind farm not only helps Brazil's national power supply balance, but it also saves 37,000 of CO2 every year.
The national Eletrobras power utility, which administers the PROINFA programme, expects up to 1,200 MW of wind power capacity to be commissioned under the scheme. Operating wind capacity in Brazil at the end of 2008 was 342 MW, the largest of any Latin American country.
"There's a tremendous potential for wind power in Brazil," says Lauro Fiuza, President of the Brazilian Wind Energy Association, ABEEolioca. "It also works very well in partnership with the existing hydro capacity. Our expectations are very high for the future."
Rio do Fogo wind farm is the third in a series featured on the "Wind Power Works" website - www.windpowerworks.net - to emphasise the benefits that wind power brings around the world.
Danish Wind Industry Association
Rosenørns Allé 9, 5
Rune Birk Nielsen
Head of Press
DK-1970 Frederiksberg C
Tel: (+45) 3373 0339 - Fax: (+45) 3373 0333
Mob: (+45) 6133 3653
- Source:
- Danish Wind Industry Association
- Author:
- Edited by Trevor Sievert, Online Editorial Journalist / Author: Rune Birk Nielsen
- Email:
- rbn@windpower.org
- Link:
- www.windpower.org/...
- Keywords:
- Danish Wind Industry Association, wind energy, renewable energy, jobs, wind turbine, wind power, wind farm, rotorblade, onshore, offshore
