Building Infrastructure For Wind Power in the U.S.
The concept of renewable energies being the norm rather than the exception to the rule is starting to take shape in the United States.
Research results published by Pew in January ’19 indicate that 77% of US consumers consider that developing the generation capacity for renewable energy (both wind and solar) is more important than before.
Increasingly, that power source is produced by the wind, which has developed from nothing to about 2.5 percent of America’s power consumption over the past decade.
With wind likely to be a popular source of renewable energy, infrastructure will be key, despite the fact that isn’t yet settled very much in the country.
Improving Costs
Given the previously high costs required to increase the generation capacity for renewable energy (wind power), it’s unsurprising that today, we don’t have a great market built around it.
However, this is set to change with the reduction in expenses associated with this source of renewable energy produced by the wind.
Ten years ago, wind power had a cost of about $70 per MWh (megawatt hour), but today, wind power is usually sold on the energy market for as low as $29 per MWh.
These figures, reported in GQ, underline the affordability and accessibility to create a wider wind power market.
The reduced costs have created room for all the elements needed to maintain a healthy energy market – for instance logistical equipment, cleaning services and third party contractors. Indeed, logistics industry experts Kardie Equipment have noted the ease with which the wind power market has opened up and allowed affordable and effective service from the wider engineering industry.
State-level Interest
With renewable energy stimulating the wider economy, there is now state level interest in developing this energy as a major source of power.
This is a big win for renewable energy as a whole given the independent and fiercely federated nature of the USA.
Most notable is the decision of Bridgeport, CT, to build a huge new wind-powered facility that will cover a large part of Connecticut’s power demand.
A Federal Takeover?
Some of the most important engineering projects in the USA have come from federal impetus: The Hoover Dam; Alta wind farm; countless bridge and rail projects. Reclamation of national energy infrastructure and the use of national impetus to drive new projects has been the focus of numerous presidential campaigns, according to Politico.
There is potential for voters to elect the leader they see as most progressive on energy, and with that, likely to create new, national networks. In that sense, the prospects for new wind infrastructure are promising.
Wind power is easy to access both onshore and offshore and is a plentiful resource in the United States. With costs moving down, the interest to improve the generation capacity for wind energy in the country has ignited the interest of private enterprise and state legislatures that started to get readily involved.
With a new election on the horizon, the dearly-needed renewable infrastructure on which the country could rely is not so far away.
