Wind power is winning in the U.S. despite Trump's critiques
The Brazos Wind Farm, also known as the Green Mountain Energy Wind Farm, near Fluvanna, Texas. (Wikimedia Commons)
"Here are a few big-picture highlights from the granular report from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory analysts...
- New wind power capacity additions were "robust" last year, totaling nearly 7,600 megawatts.
- Investment in new plants was $11 billion, and there's more bang for the buck. The average per-kilowatt installed cost of wind projects is 40% lower than 2009–2010.
- Wind power prices are lower than ever. Power purchase deals they analyzed show an average cost below 2¢/kWh, which is less than a third of 2009 prices.
- Wind now provides 6.5% of U.S. power, and it's over 30% in Kansas, Iowa and Oklahoma.
- The chart above shows how the industry has moved to bigger and more powerful designs. The average capacity for newly installed turbines is 239% higher than it was 20 years ago."
- Ben Geman, Axios Visuals