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The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) said the U.S. wind energy industry installed 1,400 MW, or around $3 billion worth, of new generating capacity in the first quarter of 2008. AWEA's quarterly report said that new wind power facilities made up close to 35 percent of the entire new power generating capacity added in the U.S. last year.
Despite this growth, concerns remain about the expiration of the production tax credit (PTC) at the end of 2008, as well as the expiration of other federal renewable energy incentives.
When the credit has lapsed previously (1999, 2001 and 2003), installations dropped by as much as 93 percent in the following year, as shown in the following chart:
First Quarter Market Release Chart
The new wind power facilities installed during the first quarter of 2008 span 10 states and bring total U.S. wind power to over 18,000 MW. Texas added over half this new capacity and now has well over 5,000 MW installed. Over 4,000 MW of projects are now also under construction nationwide, AWEA said.
Additionally, AWEA reported an increase in the share of U.S.-made wind turbine components–from less than 30 percent to approximately 50 percent in three years. Prior to 2005, AWEA estimated that less than a third of wind turbine parts were manufactured domestically. AWEA estimated that by the end of 2008 roughly half of turbine components for turbines installed in the U.S. will be produced domestically.
A complete list of projects and manufacturing facilities added in the first quarter of 2008, as well as existing and under construction projects as of 3/31/08 is available at www.awea.org.
Related Articles of Interest:
AWEA announces annual outlook, forecasts continued growth
5,244 MW of U.S. wind power added in 2007
Exclusive reports from AWEA (podcast)
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