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.
Lightning strike blade damages push Vestas into fresh quarterly loss
Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas has posted another quarterly loss, due to extraordinary warranty on a “considerable number of blades”, and re-introduced a guidance for all of 2020, expecting a lower profitability than seen earlier this year. Earnings before interest and taxes (Ebit) and special items plunged to €34m ($40m), from €128m in the second quarter of 2019. The decrease was driven by increased cost levels derived from warranty provisions as well as logistical challenges and supply-chain bottlenecks, amplified by . . . Complete story »
Michael Moore–produced ‘Planet of the Humans’ doc pulled from YouTube, director cries ‘censorship’
The Michael Moore–produced documentary “Planet of the Humans” was pulled from YouTube overnight due to a “copyright claim by a third party” – prompting writer-director Jeff Gibbs to denounced the removal as a “blatant act of censorship.” “It is a misuse of copyright law to shutdown a film that has opened a serious conversation about how parts of the environmental movement have gotten into bed with Wall Street and so-called ‘green capitalists,’” Gibbs said in a statement Monday. “There is absolutely . . . Complete story »
Wind turbine factories struggle for parts in virus lockdown
Wind turbine makers are finding it increasingly difficult to get parts they need to build their machines, snarling progress on a global shift toward renewables at precisely the time scientists say it needs to speed up.Manufacturers including Vestas Wind Systems and Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy are wrestling with their own factory shutdowns and disruptions to suppliers after lockdowns related to the coronavirus spread worldwide. Delays at major ports, airports and border crossings have snagged deliveries of raw materials including steel . . . Complete story »
Wind turbine noise associated with worse self-reported sleep
(Reuters Health) – People who are exposed to wind turbine noise may have longer REM sleep latency and worse self-reported sleep than their counterparts who don’t have this exposure, a laboratory sleep study suggests. The study included 24 participants who lived close to wind turbines, and a reference group of 26 individuals who didn’t live near wind turbines, who spent three consecutive nights in a sleep laboratory. The first night was for habituation, then participants were randomized to a quiet . . . Complete story »
Climate change: Green energy plant threat to wilderness areas
Wind, solar and hydro power installations pose a growing threat to key conservation areas, say researchers. Researchers found that over 2,200 green energy plants have been built within the boundaries of the Earth’s remaining wilderness. They say that around 17% of renewable facilities globally are located in protected regions. A further 900 plants are now being developed in key areas of biodiversity. The amount of renewable energy facilities in use around the world has essentially tripled over the last 20 . . . Complete story »
Coronavirus disrupts renewable energy’s global supply chain
The coronavirus hasn’t just upended oil markets. The virus is also casting a shadow over renewable energy markets as solar and wind developers face an uncertain global supply chain. The uncertainty, especially if neither the Trump administration nor Congress offers policy clarity, has the industry worried about project delays, which could then prompt missed opportunities to take advantage of federal tax credits. “Renewable energy relies on a global supply chain,” said Greg Wetstone, CEO of the American Council on Renewable . . . Complete story »
Is it possible to build wildlife-friendly windfarms?
One of my fondest memories from my first visit to Prince Edward Island in Canada was driving with friends through the eastern part of the island, admiring the bucolic scenery and the mesmerising wildlife. Travelling in a car of “tree huggers”, we were pleasantly surprised at the sight of statuesque wind turbines peppered between patches of woodland. It was exciting to see this small corner of eastern Canada going “green”. At the time it didn’t occur to me that here . . . Complete story »
Plans refused for huge wind turbine development in Offaly countryside
Plans for a 30-year development for wind energy production in Offaly and Kildare have been rejected by Offaly County Council. Cloncant Renewable Energy Ltd, for which energy giant Statkraft Ireland Ltd is the majority shareholder, lodged plans with the councils last year for the immediate construction of nine turbines, eight of which would be located in Offaly. The other turbine would be located just over the Kildare border near Carbury. The development would have been on a total site of . . . Complete story »
Floating wind turbines poised to grow but hampered by costs
Offshore wind generation is growing rapidly and is expected to make up 25 percent of total wind capacity by 2028, up from 10 percent in 2019, according to a new study from the research firm Wood Mackenzie. Most of the growth of offshore wind is expected to be in areas suitable for turbines fixed to the sea bed, according to the study. Only a small fraction of offshore wind capacity over the next eight years will be from floating wind . . . Complete story »
What happens to all the old wind turbines?
Welcome to the wind turbine graveyard. It stretches a hundred metres from a bend in the North Platte River in Casper, Wyoming. Between last September and this March, it will become the final resting place for 1,000 fibreglass turbine blades. These blades, which have reached the end of their 25-year working lives, come from three wind farms in the north-western US state. Each is about 90m (300ft) long, and will be cut into three, then the pieces will be stacked . . . Complete story »
