Wind Power To The Rescue?

Via the great Jetson Green (check the EcoLinks list on the right) comes this tidbit:

Here's some interesting news: a new Department of Energy report claims wind turbines could generate 300 gigawatts of electricity -- roughly 20% of the US electrical grid -- by 2030. ... The report doesn't necessarily predict the future of the wind industry, but it paints a picture of what a particular 20% wind scenario could mean for the nation. The wind industry currently produces about 17 gigawatts of electricity, so we're talking about significant growth over the next twenty-something years. That said, wind industry growth has been fierce in recent years and is on track to meet these numbers if growth holds pace.

My guess is that it will be higher, but only because I don't believe the very optimistic DOE projections of the amount we will be getting from the depleting reserves of natural gas and oil. Still, nice to see that wind is getting a serious look from the muck-a-mucks in DC.

Photo: Keith Gillard

The Wind Atop My Office

Construction has began here in Houston on one of the most innovative office towers in the U.S. Located at 1501 McKinney Street, Discovery Tower is a 30 story office building that will cost upwards near $300 million to build. The building is capped with 10 electricity generating wind turbines. In addition, Discovery Tower will be built to achieve LEED Gold certification from the USGBC.

With construction set to finish in the second quarter of 2010, the Gensler-designed green skyscraper will have air filtration, water-efficient plumbing, and an energy efficient heating and cooling system, among other things.

The Houston Chronicle reports that the "mini wind farm should also make a huge design statement and help market the building, as more companies look for space where their employees can breathe cleaner air and feel that their bosses care about the environment by leasing energy-efficient digs."

Big Wind for Texas

Mesa Power, the sustainable energy company founded by Texas oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens, has just placed the largest order ever for a single-site wind turbine purchase. Mesa is ordering 667 wind turbines from General Electric, which will be capable of generating 1,000 megawatts of electricity, enough to power more than 300,000 homes.

The deal is the first stage of the Pampa Wind Project, a proposed $2 billion wind farm in the Texas Panhandle. The area is known for strong, stable winds, low population and wide-open spaces, making it an attractive area for wind-generated energy.

When all four phases of the Pampa Wind Project is completed in 2014, the company says it will be the world's largest wind energy generator and five times bigger than the U.S.'s current largest wind power project, which produces 736 megawatts.

Earlier this spring, Mesa Power took landowners in the area on an organized tour and the company says it is starting the paperwork on signing leases with individual owners. A study commissioned by Mesa Power projected the wind farm would generate an estimate 1,495 jobs during the construction phase and 720 jobs a typical year once the site is up and operational.

About 1.3 million homes will be powered by the more than 4,000 megawatts of electricity the Mesa Power project will eventually generate. When finished, the Pampa Wind Project will be spread out over some 400,000 acres.