Showing posts with label wind farms. Show all posts

Saturday, 12 October 2013

Wind farm 'gravy train' criticised by Conservatives

The Conservatives say council planning departments are under "immense strain" from wind farm proposals

The Conservative Party has said councils in Scotland have received more than 2,500 wind farm applications in the past 18 months.

The party's figures indicate the local authorities facing the greatest workload in dealing with the proposals are Aberdeenshire, Highland and Orkney.

The Conservatives said wind farms have become a "gravy train".

The Scottish government said it has given councils additional funding to deal with the applications.

The 2,508 applications represented, according to the Conservatives, seven every working day.

Conservative energy spokesman Murdo Fraser said: "Alex Salmond has played to the gallery on this one, but the figures show the rush of wind farm applications remains intense.

"These applications put council planning departments under immense strain, and cause great concern to communities worried about the impact a massive wind farm on their doorstep will have.

"And even if a council does reject an application, there is a good chance the turbine-hungry Scottish government will overturn the ruling in pursuit of its own overly green policies."

'Out of control'

Mr Fraser added: "This surge has to stop, and the way to do that is ending ludicrous subsidies for an unreliable and intermittent energy source, and stop inviting companies to develop in areas which are clearly unsuitable.

"We appreciate that wind farms have a place, but the fact there are seven wind farm applications a day in Scotland proves this is a gravy train threatening to career out of control."

The Scottish government has said its policy represents a "balance" between different interests.

A spokeswoman said: "We recognise that some planning authorities face pressure from the volume of wind turbine applications they receive, and have identified additional funds to assist them.

"Seventeen bids were received for additional funds and earlier this year £725,000 was made available to support all of those bids.

"Our policy on wind farm applications aims to strike an appropriate balance between Scotland's massive green energy potential and the need to satisfactorily address the impacts on communities and the environment."

Thursday, 6 June 2013

Local communities offered more say over wind farms

The turbine sails of the Scout Moor Wind Farm in the South Pennines

Onshore wind farms generated 3% of the UK's electricity supply in 2011

Local communities are to be given more powers to block onshore wind farms, but also offered greater incentives to accept them, the government says.

Planning guidance in England will be changed to ensure local opposition can override national energy targets.

But the measures will see a five-fold rise in the benefits paid by developers to communities hosting wind farms.

The subsidies - worth about £100,000 a year from a medium-sized farm - could be used to reduce energy bills.

Alternatively, the money could pay for energy efficiencies in the host community or fund other local initiatives.

The government said the measures would ensure local communities had a greater stake in the planning process.

It said it expected the energy industry to improve its community benefit packages by the end of the year.

Protection of landscape

This increase will be from £1,000 per megawatt (MW) of installed capacity per year, to £5,000 per MW per year, for the lifetime of the wind farm.

This means a medium-sized 20 MW wind farm could produce a benefits package to the local community worth £100,000 a year.

“Start Quote

We want to give local communities a greater say on planning, to give greater weight to the protection of landscape, heritage and local amenity”

Eric PicklesCommunities and Local Government Secretary

It will be up to local communities and developers to decide how any money is spent.

For example, a similar scheme run by the wind farm company RES at its Meikle Carewe operation, near Aberdeen, will see local residents get £122 off their annual electricity bills.

Energy Secretary Edward Davey said: "It is important that onshore wind is developed in a way that is truly sustainable - economically, environmentally and socially - and today's announcement will ensure that communities see the windfall from hosting developments near to them, not just the wind farm".

The Department for Communities and Local Government will make sure local people have more say in the planning of wind farms and that the need for renewable energy does not automatically override the planning concerns of communities.

"We want to give local communities a greater say on planning, to give greater weight to the protection of landscape, heritage and local amenity," said Communities and Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles.

Planning approvals for wind farms in England have dropped in recent years, a situation the government is keen to turn around.

In 2008, about 70% of applications were approved, but approvals were down to 35% in 2012.

More than 4,000 turbines are in operation across the country, with almost 6,000 under or awaiting construction or in the planning system.

In 2011, onshore wind farms generated 3% of the UK's electricity supply, generating enough power for the equivalent of 2.5 million homes.

BBC deputy political editor James Landale says the coalition government wants to generate more renewable energy, but knows that onshore wind farms are hugely unpopular, so is aiming to shift the balance more in favour of local communities.

'Coalition tensions'

A Conservative source said the prime minister felt it was important to take local people into account so that if they did not want wind farms they could stop them.

“Start Quote

We want to see wind farm developers spend far more money on community investment than they are in England at present”

Paul MinerCampaign to Protect Rural England

But Lib Dem sources emphasised other changes, namely the increased subsidy from developers - a greater incentive for residents but also a greater cost for developers, our correspondent says.

He adds that the bottom line is that these changes will almost certainly mean fewer onshore wind farms and they will add to coalition tensions.

Maria McCaffery, chief executive of trade association RenewableUK, said the proposals would signal the end of many planned developments and that was "disappointing".

She said: "Developing wind farms requires a significant amount of investment to be made upfront. Adding to this cost, by following the government's advice that we should pay substantially more into community funds for future projects, will unfortunately make some planned wind energy developments uneconomic in England.

"That said, we recognise the need to ensure good practice across the industry and will continue to work with government and local authorities to benefit communities right across the country which are hosting our clean energy future."

Paul Miner, of the Campaign to Protect Rural England, welcomed the measures.

"We want to see a fairer and more open planning process, more discussions before planning applications are submitted... but we also want to see wind farm developers spend far more money on community investment than they are in England at present," he said.

"They're only spending typically half the amount in England that they spend in Scotland. "

Tuesday, 1 January 2013

Wind power deadline sees US firms rush to build turbines

By Matt McGrathEnvironment correspondent, BBC News

2012 has seen large numbers of wind turbines installed all across the US.

US energy companies are racing to install wind turbines before a federal tax credit expires at the end of this year.

Experts say that wind power has exceeded the construction of natural gas plants in recent months.

However the financial incentive for wind could be lost as congress struggles to avoid financial deadlock.

Even if the credit is extended it is expected that new installations will decline in 2013.

According to industry analysts, the federal government's production tax credit has played an important role in the expansion of wind energy across the US since it was first introduced in 1992.

Wind passes gas

At that point there was less than 1.5 gigawatts of power generating capacity provided by wind across the country. That figure has grown dramatically. This year has seen around 12 gigawatts of wind power capacity installed, outpacing even natural gas projects which have boomed on the back of cheap shale.

“Start Quote

There's a lot of rushing right now to get projects completed by the end of the year”

Rob GramlichAmerican Wind Energy Association

The government subsidy works out at 2.2 cents per kilowatt hour of power produced over ten years. This amounts to around $1m (£620,000) for every large turbine. However the deadline is absolute - to get the money the blades on new installations must be turning and generating power before the 31st of December.

"There's a lot of rushing right now to get projects completed by the end of the year," says Rob Gramlich, senior vice president at the American Wind Energy Association.

"It is not a great way to run a business with this policy-induced uncertainty."

The tax credit has proved contentious with some lawmakers criticising it as too generous. It lapsed previously in 1999, 2001 and 2003. Each time it lead to a collapse in new construction.

The American Wind Energy Association are hoping the tax credit will be passed as part of a compromise package of legislation to help the US avoid the so-called fiscal cliff. The say the most likely outcome is a short term extension of the subsidy.

The federal financial subsidy is around 30 % of the cost of a large turbine.

"There's a good chance we could get this extension, it is very hard to predict, but the industry is not making bets on the Congress getting it done," says Mr Gramlich,

Even if there is an extension there is likely to be a significant curtailment of wind installations in 2013. Wind energy companies say they need longer time frames to negotiate deals to sell the power they generate.

Iberdrola Renewables is the second largest developer of wind power projects in the United States. The company is racing to finalise new wind installations in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

However the prospects for new turbines in 2013 are slim according to Paul Copleman, communications manager for Iberdrola.

"Even if the tax credit is extended, our new construction plans likely will be ramped back substantially in 2013 compared with the last few years. So much time has passed without certainty that a normal one-year extension would not be a game-changer for our 2013 build plans."

Some analysts argue that all subsidies to wind should end and the industry should stand on its own two feet. They say that the current arrangements mean that energy companies continue to make money even when there is a surplus of wind and the market price is negative.

Dan Kish is with the Institute for Energy Research, a body long critical of subsidies for renewables. He told BBC News the extension of the tax credit was expensive, unnecessary and destabilising to the electricity grid.

"Wind produces power at a fraction of its stated capacity, and is increasingly adding unnecessary costs to consumers, just as it is in the UK," he said

"They are creations of government and serve only to make their builders and owners wealthy at the expense of the public."

Follow Matt on Twitter.

Tuesday, 15 November 2011

Vestas is dominant,

Chinese giants move closer Vestas

Published 16.11.11 pm. 06:50

The markets where Vestas is dominant, is significantly threatened by intensive Chinese intrusion.

- There has been additional pressure on the surplus supply in the form of the intense price pressure. This has led Chinese companies to look to international markets, where they specifically focus on offshore market, says Caitlin Pollock, an analyst within the Chinese wind market in IHS Emerging Energy Research, the net-Aol Energy.The Chinese wind market is characterized by oversupply and aggressive price war, and it can get China's largest wind turbine manufacturers to intensify their pursuit of market share in Europe, where the cost per MW is significantly higher.

Better hinterland

She explains that the European debt crisis has opened opportunities with the largest Chinese wind turbine manufacturers who have long leash in the banks.

The two largest Chinese manufacturers Sinovel and Goldwind has only secured loans of 8.7 billion. Euro to expand abroad, while the European Investment Bank, the EU's financing institution, has only one kreditsum in the neighborhood of 6.2 billion. euro for all projects in renewable energy in Europe.

Not only tailwind

It will not be a safe bet for Sinovel and Goldwind, respectively the world's second and fourth largest wind turbine manufacturer.

Increased shipping costs, stricter rules outside of China and a possible decline in demand in the U.S. are some of the risk factors that Chinese should have and focus on. The Chinese wind turbine manufacturers have also previously been especially notorious for their low quality, but with increasing orders from Europe are the largest manufacturers quietly by washing the reputation of himself.

The demand for high technology in Europe and the U.S. may become a problem for the small Chinese manufacturers. China's second largest wind turbine manufacturer Goldwind installed in 2010 only five per cent. of its overall intent capacity outside China.

Vestas gets U.S. orders for 139 megawatts

Published 15.11.11 pm. 09:35

Vestas has received two new orders in the U.S. totaling 138.6 megawatts.

- Both contracts include supply and commissioning as well as a 10-year service and maintenance agreement.Delivery of both projects is scheduled for mid-2012 and both projects are expected to be commissioned at the end of 2012, Vestas wrote in a message.The orders are delivered by First Wind, as the two wind projects Palouse Wind and Bull Hill has ordered total 77 paragraphs.V100-1.8 MW wind turbines.

Vestas has now reached a new orders in 2011 to 5213 megawatts of firm and unconditional orders. The prognosis for the whole year sounds of 7000-8000 megawatts.

Ritzau Finance

Friday, 4 November 2011

Wind farms 'displace' rare birds

Hen harriers and golden plovers were among the birds found to be breeding in fewer numbers close to wind farm sites.Some of Scotland's rarest birds are being displaced by wind turbine developments, a study has suggested.

RSPB Scotland, which part-funded the study, said the findings showed turbines should not be sited near vulnerable bird populations.

The research, newly published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, looked at 12 upland wind energy sites in the UK.

The distribution of birds across each wind farm was compared with that on similar nearby sites without turbines.

Hen harrier are among species researchers believe affected SNH welcome the publication of this important paper