WIND POWER INDIA 2011 International Conference & Exhibition 7-9 April 2011

World institute of Sustainable Energy (WISE) planning to organize  WIND POWER INDIA 2011 International Conference & Exhibition in Chennai, 7-9 April 2011.  It is the first-of-its-kind international wind event to take place in India. It is the international counterpart of India’s coveted national wind event, WIND INDIA, which was launched in 2006 in Pune, India, by the renowned sustainability think-tank, the World Institute of Sustainable Energy (WISE). Following its resounding success, WISE decided to hold the event on a biennial basis, and this gave rise to the second WIND INDIA event in 2008 in Chennai, India. Read More

Why wind speeds have slowed ?

Wind speeds have slowed over three decades across the Northern Hemisphere.

Increasing amounts of vegetation could be causing up to 60% of a slowing in wind speed across the Northern Hemisphere, according to researchers analysing three decades of wind-speed data in Nature Geoscience1 today. 

The decline is a potential concern for wind-turbine efficiency. But researchers cannot tell whether the effect, an average 10% slowdown, will make much difference to wind turbines — the slowing winds measured are at 10 metres above the ground, whereas turbines operate at 50–100 metres up, where there is little global data.

Several previous regional studies looking at the United States, Australia, China and parts of Europe have shown decreasing wind speeds just above the planet's surface. Climate change, afforestation and urban development had been mooted as possible causes. But, says Robert Vautard, at the University of Versailles Saint Quentin in Yvelines, France, "people always said the data were rubbish. There was no quality-controlled global archive of data." 

Vautard and his colleagues collected data from about 10,000 weather stations, although they removed all but 822 stations from their list because of incomplete records. That left records stretching back to 1979, taking in Europe, central Asia, eastern Asia and North America. 

Vautard had expected a study spanning such a large area to show speeds increasing in some areas and decreasing in others. But, he says, "we were surprised to see a very clear trend across the whole Northern Hemisphere". Annual wind speeds had declined at 73% of the stations, dropping by 5–15% over almost all of the land areas examined. The most pronounced effect was seen across Eurasia. The researchers also found that stronger winds have been affected more than weak ones. 

Brian Golding, director of forecasting research at the UK Met Office in Exeter, Devon, says that the observation is interesting. "However," he adds, "the timescales are very short for a meteorological trend — it's entirely possible that the previous 30 years would show a different trend."

Vautard counters that the few available records dating back to 1959 suggest that the trend had been developing since the 1960s.

Total installed capacity of all wind turbines installed worldwide reached 175 Gigawatt in mid-2010

Latest news we got that the total capacity of all wind turbines installed worldwide reached 175 Gigawatt in mid-2010, compared with 159 Gigawatt by the end of 2009. 

WWEA expects that the market for new turbines will reach a size between 35 and 40 Gigawatt in the year 2010, close to 2009 when 38 Gigawatt were added. With this increase, the global capacity will reach almost 200 Gigawatt by the end of this year. With an expected total increase of 15 GW in the year 2010, China will most likely become number one country in terms of total capacity by the end of 2010, thus surpassing the USA.

The world market for wind turbines saw robust growth in the first half of the year 2010, with approximately 16 Gigawatt of new capacity added worldwide. Again China represents by far the largest market and added 7800 Megawatt within only six months, reaching total installations of almost 34 Gigawatt. 

The USA, still number one in total capacity with 36 Gigawatt, saw a major decrease in new installations and added only 1200 MW, followed by India. The five major European markets showed similar growth: Germany added 660 Megawatt, France and the UK 500 Megawatt, Italy 450 Megawatt and Spain 400 Megawatt. 

Germany Launched 5 MW Wind Turbine

Germany Launched  "5M" wind turbine, which is designed and built by Germany's REpower Company.  This Wind Power Turbine officially launched at a dedication event in Germany this week with over 600 guests from business and politics. 

Germany country now emerging as one of the strongest wind power markets in world. In figures, wind power already meets more than 30 percent of the electricity demand in the German states Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. 

The largest wind turbine in the world, a 120-meter (394-feet) capable of generating 5 MW at full output has officially inaugurated and connected to the German electrical grid.

India has huge growth and potential for wind power generation

India has huge growth and potential for wind power generation, Indian Wind Power Industry has grown in leaps and bounds. India Wind Power Ranked fifth in the world, with total capacity of 10.2 GW (as on 31 March 2009).

India has the potential to reach in Wind Power Generation Installed capacity of 241.3 GW by year 2030. This projection is the part of the report 'Indian Wind Energy outlook 2009' published jointed by the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) and the Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers' Asociation (IWTMA).  The report speaks of the immense potential that the sector has in meeting 21% to 24 % of the country's electricity demand by year 2030

World Bank Investment in Renewable Energy Sources

The World Bank (WB) Group has achieved record levels of investment in renewable energy (R.E.) and energy efficiency (E.E) in developing nations during the fiscal year 2008–09. Financing by the Group—comprising the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)—rose by 24 percent to reach $3.3 million—a figure which accounts for 40 percent of the total Bank Group lending in the energy sector. During the past five years, from 2004–09, the Bank Group approved 366 R.E. and E.E projects in 90 countries. 

Financing for these projects during that period amounted to more than $7 billion, surpassing the commitment made by the WB Group at the 2004 Bonn International Renewable Energies Conference to increase support for new renewable energy and energy efficiency by nearly threeand-a-half times.

While MIGA provided over $350 million to support R.E. and E.E. projects, IFC made a contribution of more than $1 billion over the past 3 years, financing a record 12 R.E. projects. Most of the funding by IFC occurred in WORLD BANK GROUP MAKES RECORD INVESTMENTS IN R.E.  2009 and included financing three wind projects in Bulgaria, Chile, and Turkey, which have a combined generating capacity of more than 500 MW.   IFC also secured approval from the Trust Fund Committee of the World Bank-administered Clean Technology Fund (CTF) for a $15 million contribution to a 68 MW wind project in Mexico.  

The WB entity made its first investment in solar photovoltaic manufacturing in China and also financed a geothermal project in the Philippines in 2009, made commitments to two clean energy private equity funds in Asia, and entered into two risk-sharing cofinancing agreements with commercial banks. The IFC is also working closely with the World Bank to encourage countries to implement regulatory frameworks that stimulate investment in renewables.

The WB Group approved a 'Strategic Framework on Development and Climate Change' in 2008, which further aims to increase investments in new renewable energy and energy efficiency by 30 percent per year between 2008–12, and increas