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Baoding new energy industry base take

Posted on 06 September 2010 by admin

   

    Since 2005, under the careful organization and implementation, Baoding High-tech Zone A total of 34 projects were technology-based SME Technology Innovation Fund to support, a total of 9.8 million yuan to obtain funding. Innovation Fund of the implementation of the strong support of the Baoding High-tech Zone start-up period of the development of enterprises to grow.

More importantly, in the Innovation Fund’s lead, Baoding High-Tech Zone Innovation Fund working model drawing on a comprehensive science and technology carried out to solve the financing problem of SMEs various attempts and achieved good results. High-tech Zone, Baoding the responsible person: “At present Baoding new energy and energy equipment industry base has been forming in the future innovation fund will be based off some help.”

Innovation Fund to cultivate well-known enterprises

In the Innovation Fund support, a number of high-tech zone of Baoding High-tech SMEs to grow rapidly.

AVIC-Hui Tang Wind Power Equipment Co. Ltd. is a research and development, production and wind power blades business. In 2000, the Baoding Huiyang Aviation Propeller Factory completed a national key scientific and technological project – 600kW of large wind turbines the wind wheel blades group research task, the first piece of domestic commercial wind power blade was born. However, as Baoding Huiyang Aviation Propeller Factory of the successor to the Air Teng-hui in the development of 750kW wind power blade product of the financial difficulties encountered in the process.

Teng-hui is in the Air for the money to worry about when the innovation fund lent a helping hand. In 2004, the Air-Hui Teng 750kW wind turbine wind wheel blades innovation fund industrial projects with 320,000 yuan loan interest subsidies. Funded by the Innovation Fund, the Air Teng-hui in the successful development of 600kW wind power blades and to realize industrialization experience, based on a reference prototype method, fully absorb the international advanced technology and experience, combined with its own advantages of aviation technology, only with more than a year will complete the scheduled tasks, developed with independent intellectual property rights of the 750kW wind blade products, and the smooth realization of industrialization.

AVIC-Hui Teng 750kW wind turbine blades wind round the successful development of follow-up development of the enterprise has injected new vitality, but also for the company’s large-scale wind power development aspects of wind wheel blades accumulated valuable experience.

In the 750kW wind turbine blades wind round the industrialization of the project implementation process, the Air Teng-hui to use self-developed technological achievements – vacuum plastic injection molding and other processes at room temperature-curing method, greatly improved work efficiency and ensure the forming quality, and its process better than the international standard of similar products. Teng-hui in the Air National Aero-Technology is also integrated aerodynamic shape of the tip-optimal design for noise reduction, in order to prevent the blade low temperature vibration, has successfully developed and patented damper structure.

CNAC Teng-hui of the 750kW wind power blades developed to fill the domestic wind turbine wind wheel blades product gaps. The blades of wind power products to realize industrialization, due to technological level, product quality, work efficiency and foreign goods equal to or even higher than foreign products, reducing the cost of our wind farm construction investment, promoting the domestic wind power industry development.

After years of development, China has developed into a set of Air-Hui Teng design and development, process development, mold development, testing testing, production and sales and maintenance in one of the nation’s largest specialized manufacturer of wind power blades, but also currently the only implementation of wind power blades large-scale production enterprises in the development of domestic production of blades in the leading position as the field of wind power equipment manufacturers leading enterprises.

High-tech Zone in Baoding, in addition to the Air Teng-hui, the Innovation Fund has also trained many businesses. Innovation Fund who have been receiving support from Australia Connaught pharmaceuticals, such as Al-Qaeda saw the industry grow 12 enterprises and self-built a plant for acquisition of land; Chinese imitation technology, Yi grid and communications companies have also purchased more than 20 standard factory buildings, sales revenue by leaps and bounds.

Promote investment in innovation fund park

Driven by the Innovation Fund, Baoding High-tech Zone to help increase the strength of corporate finance.

With new energy and energy equipment as the main directions of Baoding High-tech industrial zone from the north in 2000 on the selected speed company, three Sichuan Electric, Huayi wind power, etc. with their own core technology, the development potential, outstanding innovation capability of enterprises as key support object, which later became the most important leader in the field of solar photovoltaic in China’s Yingli New Energy Company.

In 1998, the then State Planning Commission, the proposed project of China’s first set of three megawatts of polysilicon battery and application demonstration projects. At this time, a complex called the Miao Liansheng ex-servicemen, as a newly established near the company’s head of Yingli come up with their own savings and many years of struggling to secure the feasibility report prepared by the project.

At the time, to enter the field of solar photovoltaic industry development means that there is likely to be the “victim.” For a fledgling private enterprises, Yingli Solar PV companies in the field of pioneering very difficult, Miao Liansheng savings can only be said to be utterly inadequate. At this time, Baoding High-tech Zone promising direction of development of new energy industries, do not hesitate to transfer their ownership, investment funds, etc. right Yingli companies the priority list. Timely help, so that in an initial period of British profit companies survive the hardship.

10 years, Yingli to rely on a number of companies able to substantially increase production, enhance the photoelectric conversion efficiency results of independent innovation and achieve a leap-forward development, a 66-fold increase in production capacity. At present, Yingli has built the world’s fourth domestic only have a full industry chain polysilicon solar cell production system. In 2007, Yingli successful listing in the United States New York Stock Exchange, becoming the first company in Hebei Province in the United States New York Stock Exchange listed companies, fast moving towards the internationalization of advanced photovoltaic generating equipment enterprises.

Now, the British did not stop Lee’s pace of technological innovation. Currently, the company’s polycrystalline silicon solar cell project a “major national high-tech industrialization project” through innovation so that the cutting of silicon slice thickness of 180 microns, the utilization of raw materials increased by 40% to the world’s highest level.

New energy and energy equipment, base molding

Hi-tech Zone in Baoding efforts, financing, innovation and environmental construction escalation, Baoding High-tech District, a base of energy and energy equipment to achieve rapid growth.

Baoding High-tech Zone is located inland, but also non-capital cities, high-tech zones, development does not have the advantage, but, after 10 years of development, but gradually won the “State of new energy and energy equipment industry base”, “national science and technology trade export innovation base “,” national renewable energy industry base “,” International Science and Technology Cooperation Base “,” National Hi-tech Industry Base (New Energy and Industrial) “and many other national titles, and create a number of” China’s first . ”

    As a whole industrial chain of China’s first large-scale solar cell manufacturer, a 240 kilograms of China’s first solar cell silicon ingots, China’s first wind-power chip blade, a high-power China’s first wind blade research and development center, China’s first station to the U.S. exports of large-scale wind power machine, China’s first large-scale wind power machine drive test platform, a diameter of 320 millimeters of China’s first germanium crystal rods, China’s first set of high-voltage large-capacity electric cascade speed device, China’s first set of Power-line monitoring system, China’s first solar buildings and so on. High-tech Zone, Baoding to become China’s high-tech zones in 56 countries in the first set foot in the new energy industries, and is the only one with new energy as the main industry, the direction of high-tech zones.

Baoding High-tech zone as the “China Power Valley” the implementation of the construction of the main body, currently has a photovoltaic, wind power, energy saving, rechargeable batteries, power transmission and electric power automation equipment such as six industrial clusters and a more complete system for the new energy industry, park in the new energy equipment manufacturing companies to reach more than 170.

I am an expert from China Crafts Suppliers, usually analyzes all kind of industries situation, such as halogen spot lamp , hollow cathode lamps.

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Baoding new energy industry base take

Posted on 06 September 2010 by admin

   

    Since 2005, under the careful organization and implementation, Baoding High-tech Zone A total of 34 projects were technology-based SME Technology Innovation Fund to support, a total of 9.8 million yuan to obtain funding. Innovation Fund of the implementation of the strong support of the Baoding High-tech Zone start-up period of the development of enterprises to grow.

More importantly, in the Innovation Fund’s lead, Baoding High-Tech Zone Innovation Fund working model drawing on a comprehensive science and technology carried out to solve the financing problem of SMEs various attempts and achieved good results. High-tech Zone, Baoding the responsible person: “At present Baoding new energy and energy equipment industry base has been forming in the future innovation fund will be based off some help.”

Innovation Fund to cultivate well-known enterprises

In the Innovation Fund support, a number of high-tech zone of Baoding High-tech SMEs to grow rapidly.

AVIC-Hui Tang Wind Power Equipment Co. Ltd. is a research and development, production and wind power blades business. In 2000, the Baoding Huiyang Aviation Propeller Factory completed a national key scientific and technological project – 600kW of large wind turbines the wind wheel blades group research task, the first piece of domestic commercial wind power blade was born. However, as Baoding Huiyang Aviation Propeller Factory of the successor to the Air Teng-hui in the development of 750kW wind power blade product of the financial difficulties encountered in the process.

Teng-hui is in the Air for the money to worry about when the innovation fund lent a helping hand. In 2004, the Air-Hui Teng 750kW wind turbine wind wheel blades innovation fund industrial projects with 320,000 yuan loan interest subsidies. Funded by the Innovation Fund, the Air Teng-hui in the successful development of 600kW wind power blades and to realize industrialization experience, based on a reference prototype method, fully absorb the international advanced technology and experience, combined with its own advantages of aviation technology, only with more than a year will complete the scheduled tasks, developed with independent intellectual property rights of the 750kW wind blade products, and the smooth realization of industrialization.

AVIC-Hui Teng 750kW wind turbine blades wind round the successful development of follow-up development of the enterprise has injected new vitality, but also for the company’s large-scale wind power development aspects of wind wheel blades accumulated valuable experience.

In the 750kW wind turbine blades wind round the industrialization of the project implementation process, the Air Teng-hui to use self-developed technological achievements – vacuum plastic injection molding and other processes at room temperature-curing method, greatly improved work efficiency and ensure the forming quality, and its process better than the international standard of similar products. Teng-hui in the Air National Aero-Technology is also integrated aerodynamic shape of the tip-optimal design for noise reduction, in order to prevent the blade low temperature vibration, has successfully developed and patented damper structure.

CNAC Teng-hui of the 750kW wind power blades developed to fill the domestic wind turbine wind wheel blades product gaps. The blades of wind power products to realize industrialization, due to technological level, product quality, work efficiency and foreign goods equal to or even higher than foreign products, reducing the cost of our wind farm construction investment, promoting the domestic wind power industry development.

After years of development, China has developed into a set of Air-Hui Teng design and development, process development, mold development, testing testing, production and sales and maintenance in one of the nation’s largest specialized manufacturer of wind power blades, but also currently the only implementation of wind power blades large-scale production enterprises in the development of domestic production of blades in the leading position as the field of wind power equipment manufacturers leading enterprises.

High-tech Zone in Baoding, in addition to the Air Teng-hui, the Innovation Fund has also trained many businesses. Innovation Fund who have been receiving support from Australia Connaught pharmaceuticals, such as Al-Qaeda saw the industry grow 12 enterprises and self-built a plant for acquisition of land; Chinese imitation technology, Yi grid and communications companies have also purchased more than 20 standard factory buildings, sales revenue by leaps and bounds.

Promote investment in innovation fund park

Driven by the Innovation Fund, Baoding High-tech Zone to help increase the strength of corporate finance.

With new energy and energy equipment as the main directions of Baoding High-tech industrial zone from the north in 2000 on the selected speed company, three Sichuan Electric, Huayi wind power, etc. with their own core technology, the development potential, outstanding innovation capability of enterprises as key support object, which later became the most important leader in the field of solar photovoltaic in China’s Yingli New Energy Company.

In 1998, the then State Planning Commission, the proposed project of China’s first set of three megawatts of polysilicon battery and application demonstration projects. At this time, a complex called the Miao Liansheng ex-servicemen, as a newly established near the company’s head of Yingli come up with their own savings and many years of struggling to secure the feasibility report prepared by the project.

At the time, to enter the field of solar photovoltaic industry development means that there is likely to be the “victim.” For a fledgling private enterprises, Yingli Solar PV companies in the field of pioneering very difficult, Miao Liansheng savings can only be said to be utterly inadequate. At this time, Baoding High-tech Zone promising direction of development of new energy industries, do not hesitate to transfer their ownership, investment funds, etc. right Yingli companies the priority list. Timely help, so that in an initial period of British profit companies survive the hardship.

10 years, Yingli to rely on a number of companies able to substantially increase production, enhance the photoelectric conversion efficiency results of independent innovation and achieve a leap-forward development, a 66-fold increase in production capacity. At present, Yingli has built the world’s fourth domestic only have a full industry chain polysilicon solar cell production system. In 2007, Yingli successful listing in the United States New York Stock Exchange, becoming the first company in Hebei Province in the United States New York Stock Exchange listed companies, fast moving towards the internationalization of advanced photovoltaic generating equipment enterprises.

Now, the British did not stop Lee’s pace of technological innovation. Currently, the company’s polycrystalline silicon solar cell project a “major national high-tech industrialization project” through innovation so that the cutting of silicon slice thickness of 180 microns, the utilization of raw materials increased by 40% to the world’s highest level.

New energy and energy equipment, base molding

Hi-tech Zone in Baoding efforts, financing, innovation and environmental construction escalation, Baoding High-tech District, a base of energy and energy equipment to achieve rapid growth.

Baoding High-tech Zone is located inland, but also non-capital cities, high-tech zones, development does not have the advantage, but, after 10 years of development, but gradually won the “State of new energy and energy equipment industry base”, “national science and technology trade export innovation base “,” national renewable energy industry base “,” International Science and Technology Cooperation Base “,” National Hi-tech Industry Base (New Energy and Industrial) “and many other national titles, and create a number of” China’s first . ”

    As a whole industrial chain of China’s first large-scale solar cell manufacturer, a 240 kilograms of China’s first solar cell silicon ingots, China’s first wind-power chip blade, a high-power China’s first wind blade research and development center, China’s first station to the U.S. exports of large-scale wind power machine, China’s first large-scale wind power machine drive test platform, a diameter of 320 millimeters of China’s first germanium crystal rods, China’s first set of high-voltage large-capacity electric cascade speed device, China’s first set of Power-line monitoring system, China’s first solar buildings and so on. High-tech Zone, Baoding to become China’s high-tech zones in 56 countries in the first set foot in the new energy industries, and is the only one with new energy as the main industry, the direction of high-tech zones.

Baoding High-tech zone as the “China Power Valley” the implementation of the construction of the main body, currently has a photovoltaic, wind power, energy saving, rechargeable batteries, power transmission and electric power automation equipment such as six industrial clusters and a more complete system for the new energy industry, park in the new energy equipment manufacturing companies to reach more than 170.

I am an expert from China Crafts Suppliers, usually analyzes all kind of industries situation, such as halogen spot lamp , hollow cathode lamps.

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sustainable development and energy security

Posted on 05 September 2010 by admin

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

AND

ENERGY SECURITY

 

Abstract

 

 

Sustainable Development in the words of Brundtland report   is “the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations

To meet their own needs “.

 

 

In this context nuclear energy as a future energy source has occupied centre stage of

India’s concern. The characteristics of nuclear energy, it’s economic, environmental

and social impact and its link to sustainable development have come under the scanner of economic and political debate in the recent times.

 

 

This paper entitled “Sustainable Development and Energy Security” attempts to explore the prospects of adopting nuclear energy as a future energy source to meet the India’s

growing energy needs. Nuclear energy, though requires large capital investment in form of nuclear power plants, is seen as an alternative to fossil fuels. Use of nuclear energy not only meets the growing energy demands, but also minimizes the environment and social burdens.

 

 

Nuclear energy does not have environmental effects on global warming, green house effect, climate change and pollution. Hence the central goal of sustainable development i.e.maintainence and development of natural, human and social assets will have been met by use of nuclear energy.

 

This paper analyses the following aspects:

Various forms and sources of energy.
The role of energy in economic development.
The problems of developing countries vis-à-vis energy security.
Nuclear power and its importance in the light of power shortage in India in the context of sustainable development.
Suggestions.
Conclusions.

 

.        Keywords: sustainable development, energy security, nuclear energy,

 

1.     SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND ENERGY SECURITY

 

 

1)      Introduction

India’s energy resources are mostly available in convenient form. India has a

Significant reserves of coal, its electricity generation is also significant

Today more than 70% of power generation is through burning of coal.

We have 221 billion tones of coal reserves .India has a large hydro potential and only a part of this potential has been exploited .as per department of atomic energy  of India ,India as also good uranium deposits supporting growth of “Nuclear Energy”. India is growing giant facing the critical challenge of meeting a rapidly increasing demand for energy .

 

India ranks 6th in the world in terms of energy demand and our economy is projected to grow  7% to 8% in next two decades .the international energy agency projects indias dependence on oil imports will be more at 91.6% by the year 2020  and India is relatively poor in the oil and gas resources . Even though there are several problems associated with energy in India from 1951 to 2005, it has produced coal 12 times greater then what was available in 1951 crude oil production increased 110 times.   And the electricity installed capacity had a growth by over 68 times.

India has to meet two big challenges for a sustainable development  .firstly it should meet the increasing demand for energy resources in the country .secondly it should avoid all environmental hazards and its should ensure an energy security by conservation of energy  so that the future generation can also meet their wants for energy resources with available stock .this can lead to long term economic development which indicates the “Sustainable Economic Development” on which our attention is much more needed.

 

 

2.  SUSTAINABLEDEVELOPMENT

The concept of sustainable development was elaborated in the late 1980.

The tern sustainable development was brought into common use by the world commission on Environment and Development in its seminar report called

“Our common Future”.  Brundtland Commission defines sustainable development as “Development that needs the needs of the present generation without comprising the ability of future generation to meet their own needs.

 

We can understand that use of the concept “Needs” in the definition is linked with the distribution of resources through three components of man made capitals, human capital and natural capital & it aims to achieve sustainable development through integration of three dimensions in a balanced way.

 

According to Professor Barthwal of ‘Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur’ has highlighted some important indicators of sustainable development there are as follows:

1)      GDP growth rate.

2)      Population Stability.

3)      Human Resources Development Index.

4)      Clean Air index.

5)      Energy intensity.

6)      Renewable energy proportion.

7)      Material intensity.

8)      Water use.

9)      Soil degradation.

10)  Forest coverage.

11)  Re-cycling proportions.

12)  Transport intensity.

 

 

 

These indicators show the changing trends of an economy towards Sustainable Development.  Let us discuss this concept from the point of view

Of Energy Security and adopting Nuclear Energy as a future Energy Source which is the latest Debate in our country.

 

 

2)      FORMS OF ENERGY

Energy has several forms which is useful to all human beings:

Mechanical Energy:    Like kinetic and potential position against resistance.
Heat Energy:   Can cause gases to expand, can melt the metals and convert water into steam.
Radiant Energy:          Include light, radio, X-Rays, Laser etc.
Electro-magnetic Energy:       Flow of electrons producing an electric current.
Chemical Energy:        Stored in molecules of Food or in fossil fuels such as coal and oil.
Nuclear Energy:          The force that combines the atomic nucleus together it is obtained through Fusion and Fission.

These energy are inter-convertible but it incurs a economical expenses which may not be profitable also Ex: Electrical Energy into light or heat Energy.

 

3)           SOURCES OF ENERGY

Energy Sources refers to the sources from which energy is obtained to provide heat, light and power.

Renewable and Non-Renewable Energy sources:

Non-Renewable Energy sources are those which are lost in one operation the called depletable or exhaustible sources of energy their availability s always fixed and they are always at a declining stage Ex: Fossil fuel.

Renewable or In exhaustible energy sources are those which are perennial in nature they are regarded as flows rather than as stocks their total supply cannot be more than the available flow and the flow is perennial.

Ex: Hydro-electricity.

Commercial and Non-Commercial Energy Sources:

 

Commercial Energy Sources we include all those sources which are supplied through formal and organized Industries and marketing channels.Ex: Coal, Petroleum, natural gas which do not result in production, distribution and consumption or strictly passed through exchange Ex: fire wood, agriculture straw and animal waste etc.

 

Conventional and Non-conventional Energy Sources:

All those sources which the mankind is used to using are called Conventional Sources which those which are in their sources which those which are in their introductory stage or which can be used in future are called additional, alternative, or Non-Conventional Energy Sources.

Commercial sources of Energy play a vital role in developing country like India for Economic Growth and later in development.

 

4)          TRENDS IN THE PRODUCTION OF COMMERCIAL ENERGY (1950-51 TO 2004-05)

 

Energy is the a vital resource for the economic development the production of commercial energy has increased steadily after introduction of economic planning and energy sector reforms in

“New Economic Policy” in 19191.from 1951 and 2005 coal

Production has increased by nearly 12 times, crude oil production by

110 times and electricity [installed capacity] by over 68 times.

 

Growth of Commercial Energy -1951 to 2004-2005.

 

1950-1951

1970-71

2004-05

Coal [in tones]

33

76

413

Oil crude [m.tonnes]

0.3

7

34

Electricity installed capacity [mw]

2.3

16.3

137.5

Generation [billion kwh]

7

61

650

Source: Economic survey 2005-06 .

Now let us see the consumption trends of commercial energy:

Consumption Trends of Commercial Energy.

Sectoral Trends In Commercial Energy Consumption

 

1953-54

1970-71

1996-97

House hold sector

10

12

12

Agriculture

1

3

9

Industries

40

50

42

Transport

44

28

22

others

5

7

15

 

100

100

100

.

Percentage Share of Different Fuels in Commercial Energy Consumption.

 

1953-54

1970-71

1996-97

Coal

80

56

29

Oil and gas

17

35

54

Electricity

3

9

17

 

100

100

100

 

Important points:

 

a)       The transport sector was the largest consumer of commercial energy but in later stages there is a fall in total energy consumption.

b)      The industrial sector has become largest consumer of commercial energy in the country.

c)      Agriculture sector has also increased the total consumption of commercial energy.

However according to Indian planners we require:

I.      412 million tonnes of oil equivalent [mtoe]in the  year 2006-07

i.e.  the terminal year of the Tenth five year plan.

II.      564mtoe in the year 2011-12 which is the terminal year of the Eleventh plan.

In India even though the production of commercial energy has increased but the population ,industrialization, urbanization has increased much more at a greater rate and its total consumption is more so India is facing energy crisis.

 

6)  Energy Crisis in India.

In Indias economic development energy crisis are in the form of oil

Shortage, coal shortage and power shortage.

a)      Indias energy problem arises due to imbalance in demand –supply of all commercial fuels with increase economic growth the consumption of energy is also increased at a rapid rate though ONGC [oil and natural gas commission] have implemented several policies of exploration and increase of indigenous crude the consumption petroleum and oil products has far exceeding the indigenous production and refining capacity therefore is energy crisis.

b)      The coal industry performance has been failing badly in recent years the coals reserves are poor , both in quality and in quantity

c)      The creation and distribution of electricity generation in India has a poor performance where it is not able to meet the growing demands of both industrial and agriculture sectors.

d)     The performance of government local boards in distribution of electricity is also very poor; there is theft, pilferage and wastage of use of electricity both in urban and rural areas.

e)      The production of energy through different technology is not perfect; much of the energy is lost during transferring those4 energy sources to ultimate use.

These features for energy crisis in India and slow economic development.

 

7)  Basic problem of Indian economy associated with energy:

a)      Increasing consumption of commercial energy.

b)      Domination of using non-commercial sources of energy [I.e. in the rural areas ]

c)      Unequal distribution of energy.

d)     Inefficient use and under utilization of energy.

e)      High dependence on foreign countries especially on Arabian countries.

 

8) Energy Security.

Indias long term aim of energy security will be primarily about ensuring

the continuous availabity of commercial energy at competitive prices to

support its economic growth and meet life line energy needs of its house

holds with safe, clean and convenient forms of energy even if it entails

directed subsidies.secodly reducing energy requirement and increasing

efficiency are two very important measure to increase energy security.

 

Energy security is concerned dealing with various risks I.e. supply

Risk, market risk, technical risk, etc

a)      Supply risk are those risks originated with the uncertainty of imported energy where India is mostly depended on foreign countries for oil imports

b)      Market risks those risks arising through fluctuations in price of energy even though the country has adequate energy resource.

c)      Technical risks can be the technical failures which may disrupt the supply of energy generations could fail, transmission lined may trip or oil pipelines may spring a leak.

Therefore Indian needs much attention and security towards these types of risks and ensures that wastages of energy through these risks does not hamper the growth of the economy and cause hazards to environment.

In India energy security is much needed from the house hold level.

House hold energy security : clean fuel for all ;we may set up goal to provide clean cooking energy such as LPG,NG,Bio gas or kerosene to all within 20 years and ensure they use these energy for right domestic use which gives a energy security .

Currently India consumes 0-16kg of oil equivalent [kgoe] per dollar of GDP expressed in terms of purchasing power parity.

India s energy intensity is lower than the 0.23 kgoe of china,0.22 kgoe of U.S and a world average of 0.21 kgoe .this comparison conforms that there is a room to improve and energy intensity can be brought down significantly in India we can fallow these aspects like ,

a)      Lowering energy intensity through higher efficiency is equivalent to creating a virtual source of untapped domestic energy and aggressive pursuit of energy efficiency and conversion ,it is possible to reduce indias energy intensity by up to 25% from current levels

b)      Efficiency should be increase in energy extraction, conversion, transportation, as well as in consumption.

c)      Ensuring proper labeling on the equipments if the equipment fails to deliver the stated efficiency proper financial penalties should be imposed.

d)     Established benchmarks of energy consumption for all energy intensive sectors.

e)      Promote minimum life cycle cost purchase instead of minimum initial cost procurement by the government and the public sector.

The failure of energy sector to meet the increasing intensity of demand is considerable falling to extent. this was due to the lack of importance given by our 5year plan because they did not give long term policy imperatives in energy planning .our 8th plan gave importance to long term integrated planning here the emphasis  was laid both on efficiency strategy of long run energy supply and energy end use  .

Our planning commission realized the following drawbacks of unplanned measures about energy security it mainly turned its attention towards; 1) gradual shift from non renewable energy sources to renewable one.2) the emphasis was laid on energy conservation and management of demand and efficient utilization of energy resources .3) distribution of energy needs high priority in meeting the basic energy needs of the rural and the urban poor in the immediate future.

According to Jyoti Parikh and Kirit Parikh,” the critical problem today lies in increasing the efficiency of use of resources the inefficiency in the use of created capacities have undermined the financial viabilities of energy sector units public sector units seem to be unable to deal in a commercial manner with users with political clout reforms, therefore have to involve in situational arrangements.”

9)   Strategies for Energy Security in Future:

The main problem of India is that we are much dependent on crude oil on foreign countries we should organize more research and development programmers so that we can explore our potential to meet our domestic energy demand

The government of India has come up with some strategies like:

Exploration in new areas like exploring in the deeper layers of the producing fields exploring in new areas of deep water and difficult frontier areas.
The newly discovered fields has to be properly developed by using modern new technology in producing areas
The methods and technologies must be upgraded for improving existing major fields.
Using alternatives sources of energy such as :
Coal bed methane.
Gas hydrates.
Underground coal gasification.
Shift to natural gas and NG.
Ethanol made from sugar.
Bio- diesel extracted from jetropha, karanja tree etc.

Even though policies are made and government has taken initiatives in strict

areas of energy conservation and management of oil demand and ensuring

proper measures to have energy security Indias demand from energy sector is

increasing at a rapid rate therefore the best choice adopted by all our Indian

Planners and government is to select an another energy sources which is clean

energy and operating cost should be moderate and Indian environmental hazards

such as ozone depletion, and green house effect, and acid rain faced by use of

fossil fuel are minimized the best outcome of this decision is the “Use of

Nuclear Energy” which can lead to long term economic development

This can contribute to sustainable economic development.

 

10)    Nuclear Power For India.

India progress  in recent years after the introduction of new economic policy is no doubt a progressive development for maintaining our current economic growth rate of 8% to10%per annum we should solve the problem of inadequacy of energy supply which is a major constraint on accelerating indias growth rate .

The 123rd agreement between India and united states of America had contributed some valuable hopes towards achieving the dual objectives of our nation .firstly to ensure the challenges of energy security .secondly to achieve the objectives of environmental sustainability. there fore India’s nuclear programme was founded to address the challenge of energy security and attain self reliance and technological independence.

 

 

11)   Nuclear Energy is also Clean Energy.

In India there is high dependence on use of fossil fuel and the rich use of

Fossil fuel have definitely contributed to environmental hazards .most of the

scientists agree that pollution is contributing to global warming and to

climatic change to minimize these burdens our environment requires a

clean and green energy like “Nuclear Energy”.

In India even producing electricity involves huge wastages and

Environmental hazards .Nuclear energy is best energy that has taken the full

Responsibility of disposal of all its wastages and meeting its full cost of

Doing so .Nuclear energy does not contribute to global warming the cost

Of the fuel for a nuclear power station is very economical compared to

an equilivalent coal fired power station .the electricity generated from

nuclear reactors is competitive with electricity produced from coal, even

after providing for management and disposal of radio active wastages and

the decommissioning of reactors so, Nuclear energy will be a clean and an

affordable source of energy.

 

12) Scope for Nuclear Energy in India.

In India at present only 3% of India’s energy needs are met from nuclear sources

India plans to produce 20,000 mwe from the nuclear sector by 2020 increasing from the very low level of 3700 mwe at present.

The increased share of nuclear power in the Indian energy mix will diminish the reliance on fossil fuel and reduce carbon emissions from India.

 

 

13) Growth and Performance of nuclear Plants in India.

 

The tarapur plants, unit one and unit two and Rajasthan atomic power plant are

The major power plants in India let us see the trends in the growth rate of

Nuclear power generations capacity.

 

Various aspects of nuclear power scenario in India ,

 

 

Year

Capacity

Annual growth rate.

Generation

MKWH

Productivity

Co efficient (kwh per mw)

1970-71

420

-

2417

5754.76

1971 -72

620

47.6

1189

1918.05

1972- 73

640

3.2

1133

1770.31

1979- 80

640

-

2876

4495.38

1980- 81

860

34.4

3009

3498.83

 

 

 

 

 

 

Source, Ministry of energy government of India .1980.

 

14) Role of Nuclear power.

 

Nuclear power has definitely contributed to increase in electricity and

It is likely to increase more the plans to meet the increasing production

of energy was attempted in two ways: firstly the department of atomic

energy gave importance to use of domestic uranium resources in

pressurized heavy water reactors (PHWRs).secondly on an imported

technology light water reactors was setup at kundankulam in Tamil

nadu for this purpose .to exploit the vast thorium reserves in the country

Bhaba Atomic Research centre developed a 300 Mve advanced heavy

Water reactor for this purpose .therefore nuclear power has good

Technology in India with very significant potential for avoiding the

Burning of large quantity of poor quality coal .the uranium and

thorium resources are more in the country and use of fast breeder reactors

thorium reactors which can tap the full energy potential in nuclear energy

materials through the use of recycle technologies has contributed towards

creation of extra energy for increased economic growth.

 

15) Safety of Nuclear power.

India today, It has been operating with 200 Nuclear reactors with a

Record of safety in its environment. The Atomic energy regulatory board

In India as per the directions of International Energy Agency works on

Established line of standard so safety is maximized with extra care

Unless there is failure in transferring nuclear power plants and

problems of radioactive causes of nuclear power plants –Nuclear

energy is very safe to use in any economy.

 

 

 

 

 

16) The Economics of Nuclear Power.

The unit energy cost of nuclear power compared to power from coal

At locations away from coal pits are economical high capacity factors,

low discount rates and reduced capital costs are factors, which make

nuclear power more attractive and conditions in India for improvement of

nuclear power in good, with its low variables nuclear power improves

its relative economics with year of operation of the power plant.

 

17) Suggestions:

To be always dependent on foreign countries for crude oil is not secured

Economic activity .we should create our own opportunities to meet the

Domestic demand.

There must be an gradual shift from the use of non renewable sources

of energy.

The Research and Development programme must be conducted for exploiting the potentials of non – conventional sources of energy ,
Exploration is must in areas of estimated energy availability.
The technology used in creation ,generation and transferring of

Energy should be upgraded.

Economic planners should give long term planning in energy supply sources to meet basic demands of economy etc.

 

18) Concluding Remarks:

India’s fuel resources position definitely invites development and

deployment of nuclear power programme .nuclear energy will definitely

Contribute to the long term success of sustainable development

the technology to harness nuclear power are still under the

modernization stage in India, effective government support is definitely

needed in terms of increasing the efficiency though our power sector

 

 

makes an considerable growth, our rapid industrialization and improved

agriculture and quick changes in population is more than the energy

generations hence consumption is more than supply and production.

this should not be a continuing increasing trend in future the steps and

measures to control this situation will definitely contribute to the long

term economic development of India which is nothing but

“Sustainable Development”.

 

 

By

Pradeep Raj .S

MBA Student

Bangalore, India

Email:pradeepraj1@live.com

 

Bibliography:

i.            Raj kumar sen and mrinal kumar dasgupta

-          Major sources of energy.

ii.            Energy and Economic Development –edited by V.S Mahajan.
iii.            Karpagam –Environmental Economics
iv.            Indian Economy – 54th edition by Ruddar dutt and KPM .Sundarram.
v.            Energy and Economic Development –Jayanth vianayak vaishampayan.-ajantha publishers.
vi.            Indian Economy –Misra and Puri latest edition.
vii.            The Economics of Nuclear Power – Research papers 2007 –Stephen Thomas and peter Bradford.
viii.            Nuclear power in India – an evitable option for sustainable development of a sixth of humanity – by Dr .Anil kakodkar.
ix.            India’s energy security –Journal by “Institute for the analysis of global security on jan21th, 2004.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PRADEEP RAJ.S

MBA STUDENT

BANGALORE,INDIA

email:pradeepraj1@llive.com

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A Few Methods To Save Money By Utilizing Green Energy At Home

Posted on 28 August 2010 by admin

Green energy is great for the environment, but let’s not miss the juicy facet of making it, too. These days it being upwards of $3000 to have pro solar cells built and installed. But today you may find a number of guides which detail exactly how to shape your own entirely working solar cells on a budget using everyday inexpensive materials. More on that later, for the moment let’s cover 5 ways to create cash from green energy.

Power and water bills – The common American family monthly use bill runs about $200. That works out to be more or less $2500 a year that you are spending on electrical energy alone. Imagine having your private completely functional solar cells supplying your home with natural replaceable energy for free. Now imagine having an additional $2500 in your annual budget. Who could not use that? Tax cuts – the governing body is exceedingly generous to those that embrace green energy today. The reason being because natural energy is a great amount less costly for the government as it cuts back on our limited energy consumption.

The IRS issues these folks tax subsidies for doing so keep this under consideration as one of the money incentives of using green energy. Home price – Ask your realtor about this but having solar cells on your home significantly gains the value of your home. Think this when it is time to sell your home because other homeowners are on the lookout for a home that may save them money if they can get it just as you are. Plethora of Energy – Some folks go on to construct multiple solar cells to enormously increase their green energy output.

Why do you want to do this?  Because for every bit of green energy which you create but don’t use you can sell it back to the power company for a profit as the regime subsidizes them to do this. It’s totally up to you as to how much green energy which you create and cash you make from it.

Many homeowners bring in an exceedingly whole second revenue this way as more folk are learning out about this. Best of all is that it’s totally automated revenue for life and you do not have to do a thing beyond placing together the cells over the course of an good afternoon.

Learn to Generate Free Energy At Home using sunlight and wind energy, Click Here to slash 50% off your electricity bill with free energy guide.

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Renewable Energy – Here at Last, Thank God Almighty, Here at Last

Posted on 28 August 2010 by admin

Ever think about how many people there are in world today, and about how fast the world’s population is increasing? The per day increase is estimated to be about 204,000. That’s a lot of people.

Next question: ever think about the resources all those people are using and will continue to use in increasing amounts each day, month and year? Best not too really, especially if you want to sleep well. Here’s the basic fact or people v resources: people numbers are increasing, resources are dwindling, at least the ones we love to use, like oil and carbon fuels such as coal. Most experts also accept that these fossil fuels are heating the atmosphere, creating global warming. So, although these resources are getting scarcer, either actually or economically, they’re doing more and more damage on the way out! Doesn’t seem fair, really.

All of this raises a pretty obvious question: why on earth (pun intended) don’t we use fuels and resources that are renewable, such as the sun, water and wind. Now, you might say that we are, and to an extent I’d have to agree with you. After all, we’ve had hydro-electric energy for decades. But the downside of this is that we’re running out of rivers to put dams on, plus the fact that by damming rivers we often create huge environmental problems, such as flooding of towns, destruction of natural habitats and so on. (Not to mention that many countries don’t have rivers to dam anyway!).

Nuclear energy is good, efficient and kind on resources, but it does have its own set of issues which are fundamental, such as where to put spent fuel rods. Not in my backyard, thanks. There are also wind farms and solar heating sites, but they do not contribute hugely to energy supplies.

So, is it all doom and gloom? I don’t think so. It seems to me that the answer is to stop thinking big, and instead think small. Renewable energy sources, such as the sun and the wind, can be used in small scale as well as large scale operations. (In fact, there is large scale resistance to large scale wind farms, because of their perceived ugliness and adverse environmental impact.)

Small scale ie home or community sun and wind power schemes, however, do not impact on the environment in nearly the same way, and therefore are, or certainly ought to be, much more acceptable. There are renewable home energy systems available, and some countries subsidise homeowners to install them. However, it’s more than fair to say that there is no huge uptake of such systems, as any of us can see from simply driving around our neighbourhoods. I think this is partly inertia on most of our parts, and partly because the upfront cost is unaffordable to many of us.

Let’s address some of the ways in which such systems might gain more public acceptance:

• couldn’t governments divert funds on a much greater scale to home/community rather than national energy solutions? Of course they could. Yes, there will be resistance from existing energy companies, but aren’t they becoming dinosaurs anyway?

• More funding allied with public education campaigns (“Think Small!” “Save on Energy Costs!” etc) would likely have a very positive effect.

• More subsidies for those households who use renewable energy would be attractive, perhaps in the form of reduced local body taxes.

• Tax breaks and assistance for the companies supplying the systems would attract innovators and entrepreneurs into the market, resulting in smaller, more efficient renewable energy systems.

• Make the installation of renewable energy systems compulsory in new homes. Increased home costs? Yes, but look at the huge saving on energy operating costs.

It is a mantra to many that there are no problems in life, only solutions. I’m not sure that’s always true, but with respect to energy we all have to make the current problem an opportunity, because we have no choice. The energy sources we have taken for granted all our lives are running out and/or are environmentally unacceptable. Unless we address the issue in a meaningful way, lack of energy could be a real issue for succeeding generations. I applaud all the work going on to develop new energy sources (such as battery or hydrogen powered vehicles) but to a very large extent the ability to turn our energy problems into solutions already exists: sun, wind and, to a lesser extent, water.

Imagine a future where every household has its own renewable energy source. Sounds great to me!

You can visit my website www.shoxzy.com or my blog on this at http://shoxy314.wordpress.com/renewable-low-cost-energy-for-homes/

I am a retired lawyer. I have a great interest in all things in our world, and read widely on a large range of issues. I have always wanted to write, and submitting web articles is fun and satisfying. See http://www.shoxzy.com or my blog http://shoxy314.wordpress.com/renewable-low-cost-energy-for-homes/

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What is community based energy development?

Posted on 26 August 2010 by admin

Community-Based Energy Development or ‘C-BED’ is a scheme which maximizes the use of local and regional resources primarily for developing renewable energy generation facilities. The underlying goal of most C-BED initiatives is to leverage shared resources, such as land, money, expertise etc. in order to help grow and sustain the local community; essentially conforming to the ‘local is better’ motto.

In rural areas, C-BED aims for enhanced economic agricultural or ranching benefits with the help of land lease or royalty payments obtained from utilizing the land for renewable energy generation. Ideally, Community-Based Energy Development projects are jointly owned and operated by farmers, local businessmen, schools and other community members who come to share in the growth of such initiatives. When established, C-BED schemes bring about significant improvements in trade, jobs, personal profits (which are shared by the members of the C-BED project) and the local/ regional tax base.

Without a C-BED initiative, the majority of renewable power projects would be owned by large, external developers whose primary purpose is to extract and exploit the resource without adding any value to the local economy or stability of local power markets.

Community-Based Energy Development creates a steady market for energy that can be re-used (once built, wind farms generate reliable power at a fixed cost; and since wind is a free resource, spikes in fossil fuel costs can be avoided), which in turn greatly aids in local and regional energy independence and economic development activities.

What are the many benefits of Community-Based Energy Development and why is the government supporting it?

There are many advantages that Community-Based Energy Development brings about in societies. The government recognizes this fact by encouraging and supporting wind energy in many ways, mainly in the form of subsidies and grants. There are several economic benefits of this long-term activity which immensely assists rural and regional communities. Such projects are also environmentally-friendly and promote local and national energy independence.

With Community-Based Energy Development, it is good to note that these initiatives are normally sponsored by local area banks or rich farmers and the profits of the ownership remain within the community itself.

C-BED projects support and yield jobs for union and local contractors, engineers, accountants, lawyers, bankers and main street businesses.

If compared with out-of-area owners, a higher percentage of money utilized for the purpose of construction, operations, maintenance etc. stays with the local community and the regional area. Also, more of the dollars spent on electric bills directly circulate back into the local and regional communities as the power is not being brought from afar.

C-BED projects generally target and serve local energy needs and as such typically do not need new transmission lines and leverage the existing distribution lines in the community, which can support the output power load. Even when projects sell power to far away markets, their dispersed nature and smaller size allow C-BED projects to fit onto the existing power grids more easily than big projects. With increasing demand for energy and consequent congestion on the nation’s transmission grids, C-BED provides for a viable and cost-effective solution (remember, as costs are mostly shared, this includes interconnection cost sharing, which is one of the highest incurred project development costs).

Some Highlights of Economic Benefits of Community-Based Energy Development projects

- In May 2005, a US Dept of Energy study revealed that wind power brings more direct economic benefits to local economies as compared to any other form of new electricity (including coal and natural gas).

- In Sept 2004, the US General Accounting Office stated that wind systems produce two to three times more jobs and three times more local dollar impact compared to “out of area” interests.

According to wind resource maps, the potential of wind has barely been fully tapped. Biogas, solar, bio-diesel, small hydro and other non-wind renewable energy sources are viable in various geographic areas.

Community based energy development programs are a great boon to local and regional communities which has lead to it being backed strongly by the government.

Vert Investment Group (“Vert”) is a leading renewable energy investment advisory firm focused on small to medium-sized utility-scale generation projects in strong power markets. Vert utilizes its proven methodology, the Staged Progression Model, to guide community-based wind development projects to construction ready.

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Russia Faces Long March to Energy Efficiency

Posted on 23 August 2010 by admin

Russia Faces Long March to Energy Efficiency
MOSCOW — Residents of the Veshnyaki neighborhood in southeast Moscow were in for a surprise last month when the radiators in their apartments started heating at full blast while it was nearly 40 degrees Celsius outside.

Read more on St. Petersburg Times

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The Myth of Cheap Fossil Fuels – A Roadblock for Renewable Energy

Posted on 21 August 2010 by admin

The Myth of Cheap Fossil Fuels – A Roadblock for Renewable Energy
Recently, when Senator Harry Reid put forth a “spill bill” rather than an energy bill, my theory that the energy debate in this country has been framed upside down seemed to be confirmed.

Read more on Renewable Energy World

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How the Revised Renewable Energy Plan Affects Solar Energy

Posted on 15 August 2010 by admin

Copyright (c) 2010 Nadine Davis

If solar technology has been out of your financial reach in the past, 2011 may be the year for you. Changes to the Renewable Energy Target plan are going to make buying solar panels, solar hot water systems and other products more affordable than ever. Find out the details by reading on below.

How Solar Energy Comes into Play:

Beginning on 1 January 2011, the Renewable Energy Target is going to include two parts. The Small Scale Renewable Energy Scheme, or SRES, will cover small scale technologies like solar hot water water systems and solar panels. It will provide $40 per megawatt to homeowners who install these types of products. Investing in solar power products will come with great incentives for homeowners, thanks to this change.

Under the new SRES scheme, a household that installs a 1.5 kilowatt solar panel system in the year 2011 will receive an estimated $6,200 upfront subsidy. The typical solar hot water system will garner homeowners an upfront subsidy of around $1,200. In other words, investing in – and using – solar panel and other products will be more affordable than ever. Since they will reduce energy bills, they are doubly cost effective. Those home owners that have been putting thought behind the purchase of a solar panel system or solar hot water system may choose to wait until the changes come into reality on the 1st of January next year (2011).

Help the Planet and Save Money:

The goal of the revised Renewable Energy Target plan is for 20% of Australia’s energy in 2010 to come from renewable sources. Thanks to the new changes, this goal looks to be more attainable than ever. Its clear to see that these revised items improve the plan, and it’s definitely good news for households who are a little short on cash but would like to do their bit to assist in making this big goal an actuality. If you’re one of them, 2011 is going to be a prime year for finally investing in this eco-friendly technology.

The Large Scale Renewable Energy Target, or LRET, portion of the plan concerns large scale projects like wind farms and geothermal and solar enterprises. Although these organisations are expected to do a lot of the “heavy lifting,” the help of private homes is going to be essential for success. With everyone pitching in, it is hoped that that 20% goal will be met and exceeded. This will help reduce energy costs and, more importantly, will help save and protect the planet. If you’d like to do your own part, you can read more about these changes online.

You can learn more about the great deals to be had on Solar Panel Brisbane systems and other products by talking with an experienced Solar Power Brisbane contractor like Eco-Kinetics. Soon, you’ll be able to take advantage of subsidies that will save you considerable amounts of money on these products.

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The Future Of Wind Energy

Posted on 07 August 2010 by admin

f you’re one of those people who every winter puts out 10,000 holiday lights or every summer keeps the air conditioning cold enough to make frozen treats on the kitchen counter – or whether you’re like everyone else who simply likes the modern convenience of electrical – then you should care about how we will generate electricity in the future.


We are in no danger of running out of coal, the primary fuel source for electricity generation in the US and many other parts of the world. And we could have as many new glowing nuclear power plants as we want. But the reality is that the pollution and safety impacts of these electricity-generating technologies forecast their necessary demise:


1) The problems with coal-fired power plants include sulfur (acid rain) and mercury pollution; coal-fired power plants are the biggest source of greenhouse gases in the world; and coal mining scars land and people alike.


2) Nuclear power plants are very clean in terms of emissions of typical pollutants, including carbon dioxide (the principal greenhouse gas), but the potential for accidents and terrorist strikes has most people doubting the wisdom of more nuclear power. And let’s not forget that we still don’t know what to do with the tons of long-term radioactive waste nuclear power plants produce.


So what does the future look like for electricity generation? We must start making major strides towards cleaner technologies like wind, solar, wave, and biomass. Today we talk about wind energy in an article that was adapted from materials made available by Lester Brown and the Earth Policy Institute.


People have been harnessing the power of the wind for centuries. The concept of wind energy is simple: the wind pushes against angled blades, causing them to move (much like the sail on a boat); the blades are attached to a hub and cause it to turn, which in turn can drive other components.


In olden days – back when wind-powered devices were called windmills – the turning motion of the hub was transferred to mechanical devices such as grist mills or groundwater pumps. graphic of wind turbines In a modern wind turbine, the hub drives an electrical generator and the output is electricity.


The modern wind turbine has come a long way in terms of sophistication, and the designs of today’s wind turbines are elegant and very efficient compared to wind turbines from even a decade or two ago. Designers have also solved some problems associated with early wind turbines, such as birds dying by flying into them. Additional advancements have been made in siting technology – wind turbines can also be sited off-shore now.


With wind-generated electricity, the principal production cost is the capital outlay for initial construction. Since wind is a free fuel, the only ongoing cost is for maintenance. Given the recent volatility of natural gas prices, the stability graph of wind power cost; shows cost has come down from 38 cents per kilowatt hour in 1982 to 4 cents per kilowatt hour in 2002 of wind power prices is particularly appealing. With the possibility of even higher costs of natural gas in the future, natural gas-fired plants may be used increasingly as backup for wind-generated electricity.


When the wind industry first began to develop in California in the early 1980s, wind-generated electricity cost 38 cents per kilowatt-hour. Since then it has dropped to 4 cents or less in prime wind sites. And some long-term supply contracts have been signed for 3 cents per kilowatt-hour. By 2020, many European wind farms will be generating electricity at 2 cents per kilowatt-hour, making it cheaper than all other sources of electricity.


Wind-generating capacity worldwide is growing at over 30% per year and has jumped from less than 5,000 megawatts in 1995 to 39,000 megawatts in 2003 – an increase of nearly eight-fold. The fossil fuel with the highest growth rate – natural gas – grew at just over 2% annually during the same period. Oil grew at less than 2% annually, and coal at less than 1%. Nuclear generating capacity expanded by 2% annually.


Wind is appealing for several reasons. It is abundant, cheap, inexhaustible, widely distributed, clean, and climate-benign – a set of attributes that no other energy source can match. When the US Department of Energy (DOE) released its first wind resource inventory in 1991, it pointed out that three wind-rich states – North Dakota, Kansas, and Texas – had enough harnessable wind energy to satisfy all of the nation’s electricity needs. Those who had previously thought of wind as a marginal potential source of energy obviously were surprised by this finding.


In retrospect, we now know that the 1991 data was a gross underestimate of the potential of this renewable energy source, because it was based on the technologies available in 1991. Advances in wind turbine design since then have enabled turbines to operate at lower wind speeds, to convert wind into electricity more efficiently, and to harness a much larger wind regime. Such advancement have perhaps tripled the amount of harvestable wind. Thus, while the DOE could say in 1991 that North Dakota, Kansas, and Texas had enough wind-energy potential to supply all national ELECTRICITY needs, we may now be able to say that they have enough harnessable wind energy to supply all national ENERGY needs. (See sidebar for more information.)


Once we get cheap electricity from wind, we have the option of electrolyzing water to produce hydrogen, which provides a way of both storing and efficiently transporting wind energy. At night, when the demand for electricity drops, the hydrogen generators can be turned on to build up reserves.


Once in storage, hydrogen can be used to fuel power plants, in much the same way that natural gas is used. This hydrogen can be used either as a backup for wind power or as an alternative to natural gas, especially if rising prices make natural gas prohibitively costly for electricity generation.


Hydrogen is also the fuel of choice for the fuel-cell engines that automakers worldwide are working on for our everyday vehicles. While hydrogen-powered vehicles may still seem far off in the future, if push comes to shove on the climate front – i.e. once it becomes more obvious that we must stop burning so much oil and pumping so much CO2 into the atmosphere – cars with gasoline-burning internal combustion engines could be converted to hydrogen.


Europe is leading the world into the age of wind energy, spurred in part by concerns about global warming. The record heat wave in Europe in August 2003 that scorched crops and claimed 35,000 lives has accelerated the replacement of climate-disrupting coal with clean energy sources.


The European Wind Energy Association projects that Europe’s wind-based electricity-generating capacity will nearly triple from 2003 to 2010. By 2020, wind-generated electricity is projected to satisfy graph of wind power capacity by country; shows a steady upward trend for all countries, with Germany leading, followed by Spain and the U S, then Denmark and India the residential needs of 195 million Europeans – half of the region’s population.


After developing most of its existing 28,400 megawatts of capacity on land, Europe is now tapping offshore wind resources as well. A 2004 assessment of Europe’s offshore wind-energy potential concluded that if Europe moves more aggressively to develop its vast offshore resources, wind could be supplying all of the region’s residential electricity by 2020.


Many countries in Europe are pushing hard to bring in more wind power. Here are a few examples.


1) The United Kingdom is requiring an investment of over $12 billion in off-shore wind farms that should satisfy the residential electricity needs of 10 million of the country’s 60 million people.


2) Tiny Denmark, which led Europe into the wind era with the development of its own wind resources, now gets an impressive 20 percent of its electricity from wind.


3) Germany overtook the United States in terms of wind-based generating capacity in 1997. Now Spain is close to overtaking the United States as well.


Europe’s leadership on wind energy has given it a major economic bonus: nine of the world’s ten leading wind turbine manufacturers are in three countries – enmark, Germany, and Spain. These happen to be the three countries that have had the strongest and most stable market incentives for developing wind energy.


In the US, wind power has grown 26% per year on average over the last 5 years, but the United States is lagging in the development of wind energy. This is not because we can’t compete technologically with Europe in manufacturing wind turbines, but because of a lack of leadership in Washington. The wind production tax credit of 1.5 cents per kilowatt-hour, which was adopted in 1992 to establish parity with fossil-fuel subsidies, has been permitted to lapse three times in the last five years, most recently at the end of 2003 when Congress failed to pass a new energy bill. Such uncertainties disrupt planning throughout the wind power industry.


The United States, with its advanced technology and wealth of wind resources, should be a leader in this field, but unfortunately it continues picture of wind farm to rely heavily on coal – a nineteenth century energy source – for much of its electricity at a time when European countries are replacing coal power with wind power.


Europe is not only leading the world into the wind age, it is also leading the world into the post-fossil fuel age – the age of renewable energy and climate stabilization. By demonstrating the potential for harnessing the energy in wind, Europe is unveiling the new energy economy for the rest of the world.

Lester Brown is founder and president of Earth Policy Institute. He has been described by the Washington Post as “one of the world’s most influential thinkers” and as “the guru of the global environmental movement” by The Telegraph of Calcutta. His most recent book is Plan B: Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble.


One final note about wind power. There are naysayers out there who claim that we would have to blanket the country with “wind-meels” to replace all our coal and nuclear plants. Don’t believe it. Remember that on a wind farm, the “footprint” of the operation – the turbine base plus the service roads – occupies only 5% of the land area. That makes wind power a perfect partner with open-space operations like farming and ranching.


And oh, by the way, our current electricity-generating technologies are blanketing the country with pollution!

James Nash is a climate scientist with Greatest Planet (www.greatestplanet.org). Greatest Planet is a non-profit environmental organization specialising in carbon offset investments.

James Nash is solely responsible for the contents of this article.

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