Wind Power News: General News
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the organizations or individuals noted and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law.
Siemens Gamesa plans 600 job cuts as ‘headwinds’ persist
Wind OEM Siemens Gamesa unveiled plans to cut 600 further jobs to protect profitability in a “tough market”, but said it is well placed to benefit from the sector’s strong long-term outlook after record commercial activity last year. Siemens Gamesa said the staff reductions, affecting white collar workers, will help it stay competitive following a “transitional year” in 2020 for the industry, which is still experiencing the impact of “adverse factors” such as ongoing price pressures, rising costs and regulatory . . . Complete story »
Offshore wind gets a warning from its biggest developer
The world’s biggest developer of offshore wind farms issued a reality check to the industry, saying it has overestimated the amount of time its turbines are generating electricity. Copenhagen-based Orsted A/S announced that offshore wind farms wouldn’t produce quite as much power as previously forecast. The adjustment could shave millions of dollars of revenue a year off each project. It’s also a warning to other developers who may have used similar analysis to estimate the economics of their projects. Orsted . . . Complete story »
4 truckloads of wind turbine parts delivered to Kahuku after 6 more arrests
One small sacrifice to help a bigger cause. That’s what Kahuku resident Dana Yamauchi figured he’d do by getting arrested before dawn today near the site of a 25-megawatt wind farm planned in his community. “Even if it makes just a little bit of change,” he said. “It’s the effort that counts. It means so much to me that this is going to be worth it. I’m proud to be from Kahuku.” Yamauchi was one of three people arrested by . . . Complete story »
Police arrest 55 protesters seeking to block wind-energy farm in Hawaii
Environmentalists have long raised objections to fossil-fuel energy sources such as oil, coal and natural gas, but it turns out not everyone is wild about wind power, either. Fifty-five protesters were arrested Friday in Hawaii as they blocked roads to stop wind turbines and other heavy equipment from reaching the construction site for the Na Pua Makani Wind Project, the latest protest aimed at stopping the eight turbines from being erected in Kahuku. “Today is not the end. We’re still . . . Complete story »
‘Most renewable energy companies’ linked with claims of abuses in mines
Most of the world’s top companies extracting key minerals for electric vehicles, solar panels and wind turbines have been linked with human rights abuses in their mines, research has found. Analysis published by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC), an international corporate watchdog, revealed that 87% of the 21 largest companies mining cobalt, copper, lithium, manganese, nickel and zinc – the six minerals essential to the renewable energy industry – have faced allegations of abuse including land rights . . . Complete story »
‘Planet of the Humans,’ possibly most bracing environmental documentary ever made, premieres at Traverse City Film Festival
Director Jeff Gibbs argues we’re heading toward ‘total human apocalypse’ and green energy is ‘not going to save us, it’s actually going to kill us faster.’ Films about environmental issues have long been a staple of the documentary form, a genre that in recent years alone has brought us Before the Flood, Chasing Ice, Chasing Coral and, of course, An Inconvenient Truth. But those documentaries arguably pale in importance to Planet of the Humans, which just held its world premiere . . . Complete story »
Fell Twp. supervisors, residents focus on experimental mine reclamation, wind turbines
FELL TWP. – At a well-attended meeting Monday night, residents and supervisors addressed two prominent issues in the township: an experimental mine reclamation project and wind turbines. Supervisors motioned to formalize an agreement with Scranton-based law firm Myers, Brier & Kelly LLP at an hourly rate of $425 to provide the township with a legal opinion regarding its dispute with Laflin-based Pioneer Aggregates and its Simpson Stone Quarry on Route 171. The quarry received approval from the state Department of Environmental . . . Complete story »
Rhode Island says clean energy plan falls short
PROVIDENCE – National Grid is set to negotiate a contract for another batch of renewable energy for Rhode Island, but instead of lauding the move, the state energy office is saying that the selection falls short. Few details about the decision have been made public because talks are continuing, but the Rhode Island Office of Energy Resources says that National Grid chose only one project and that it does not come close to the 400-megawatt capacity in the request for proposals . . . Complete story »
The reason renewables can’t power modern civilization is because they were never meant to
Over the last decade, journalists have held up Germany’s renewables energy transition, the Energiewende, as an environmental model for the world. “Many poor countries, once intent on building coal-fired power plants to bring electricity to their people, are discussing whether they might leapfrog the fossil age and build clean grids from the outset,” thanks to the Energiewende, wrote a New York Times reporter in 2014. With Germany as inspiration, the United Nations and World Bank poured billions into renewables like . . . Complete story »
Around the world, buyer’s remorse sets in for costly clean power
Two decades ago, governments and utilities around the world began offering above-market rates and contracts to fuel the rise of clean energy, helping wind and solar become some of the cheapest power sources. Now, these pacts are under attack. In Canada, Ontario Premier Doug Ford killed hundreds of contracts for planned wind and solar farms. Spain pulled back subsidies, yanking the rug from projects already up and running. And in the U.S., bankrupt California power giant PG&E Corp. could soon . . . Complete story »
