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“The Spanish are coming. The Spanish are coming!”
Iberdrola SA, a Spanish utility is now the second largest producer of wind power in the United States. The company had revenue of $22.8 billion in 2007. (largest producer of wind power in US is Florida Power & Light). Iberdrola currently holds functioning facilities in Brazil, France, Greece, Italy, Mexico, Portugal, Spain, the United States and the United Kingdom, and is continuing to develop wind farms in Europe and Latin America
Recently in 2008, the spanish utility Iberdrola SA invested $1.4 billion to build out new wind power capacity in the U.S. The company invested $1.5 billion in 2007, according to a company statement. These investments represent 780 megawatts of new wind-power capacity in the U.S.
In September, Iberdrola finalized a $4.5 billion takeover of Energy East (NYSE: EAS) for $4.5 billion, Iberdrola was required by the New York Public Service Commission to build up 100 megawatts of new wind power in New York state. Through this takeover, Iberdrola now owns New York State Electric & Gas Co. NYSEG has 1.7 million upstate customers.
The Spanish wind power industry is on a roll. The Government’s new target would see wind energy supplying 15 percent national electricity consumption, up from 6.5 percent today.
“To dismiss wind energy as an expensive, niche green luxury, as many do, is to ignore what has happened in Spain, the world’s number one wind market”
– Corin Millais, CEO of the European Wind Energy Association
Why Wait, Let’s Go
Currently, wind provides about 1% of US electricity. As we now watch a great opportunity be exploited by foreign investment, America’s might is focussed on bail-out economics and dirty coal/fossil fuel lobbyist control the puppet strings of our US government. Just like the only successfull automobile plants in US are foreign owned and run, now we watch a foreign company take leadership of our wnd power. It’s a disgrace..
Spain is (I think) the most successful with wind power as a percentage of their capacity. So, these guys really do know that the ROI is there, that’s why they aren’t waiting for something else to happen.
The cost of wind power is almost comparable to fossil fuels such as coal, at between 4.5 and 7.5 cents per kilowatt hour, according to FPL Energy, builder of the country’s largest wind farm in Horse Hollow, Texas. But building a wind farm costs more than a fossil-fuel plant – between $1.5m and $2m per megawatt of capacity compared with $800,000 for a natural-gas plant. Once constructed, though, wind plants have no fuel costs compared with coal and natural gas plants.
Whether putting a small system on your roof to run part of your home power, a 40′ tower to power your whole home, or a giant utility scale turbine. If there’s wind resources and you need electricity, the payback is proven. At WindEnergy7.com our sales have over doubled since the government approved the Small Wind System 30% tax credit. But, before that our sales were already brisk. I did not wait on any government assistance to put wind on my home because the payback was already clear.
Personally, since I put my money in wind power for my own home.. My utility announced a 45% increase in electricity cost.. AND, the government approved and announced the Small Wind System 30% tax credit. So my 10 year ROI has gone to about a 5 year ROI from those 2 developments. But, to me, I was happy with the 10 year payback because the systems are developed for a 30 year life before a rebuild. That means worst case I was set to have 20 years of free electricity, right into my retirement years.. I love that.
Anyway, back to Spain. One thing that I have seen is pictures of Spain’s mountain ranges simply polluted with too many towers. Although I am a proponent of wind power, I love the landscape and mountains and it is a shame to see an over use of windpower covering a mountain to the point it ruins the beauty. There should be limits to this. Also, wind power has taken many hits on adoption due to developers putting large Utility Wind towers way to close to homes. These giant wind turbines should never be close to homes, that is a mistake that sets back the progress by causing problems for homeowners. Utility Scale Wind power should be VERY rural IMO. Using wind close to a home should be a quiet unobtrusive small wind system, they are quiet and will not cause any backlash against wind power progress.
To Buy a Wind Turbine or Become a Dealer turbine@windenergy7.com.
