As the worldwide use of wind turbine generators in utility-scale applications continues to increase, it will become increasingly important to assess the economic and reliability impact of these intermittent resources. Although the utility industry appears to be moving towards a restructured...

The purpose of this project was to determine the technical feasibility, economic viability, and potential impacts of installing and operating a wind power station and/or small hydroelectric generation plants on the Makah reservation. The long-term objective is to supply all or a portion of...

Although small wind turbine technology and economics have improved in recent years, the small wind market in the United States continues to be driven in large part by state incentives, such as cash rebates, favorable loan programs, and tax credits. This paper examines the state-by-state economic...

In the United States, the 'community wind' sector - loosely defined here as consisting of relatively small utility-scale wind power projects that sell power on the wholesale market and that are developed and owned primarily by local investors - has historically served as a 'test bed' or 'proving...

The U.S. wind industry experienced a banner year in 2008, again surpassing even optimistic growth projections from years past. At the same time, the last year has been one of upheaval, with the global financial crisis impacting near-term growth prospects for the wind industry, and with federal...

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) has had a longstanding goal of introducing uncertainty into the analysis it routinely conducts in compliance with the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) and for strategic management purposes. The need to introduce some...

Short-term power fluctuations from wind farms may affect interconnected-grid operating costs and stability. With the increasing availability of wind power worldwide, this has become a concern for some utilities. Under electric industry restructuring in the United States, the impact of these...

The impact on a utility incorporating wind turbine generation due to wind speed sampling frequency, wind turbine performance model, and wind speed forecasting accuracy is examined. The utility analyzed in the study was the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and the wind turbine assumed...

The U.S. Department of Energy/National Renewable Energy Laboratory (DOE/NREL) has developed a spreadsheet-based wind model (Jobs and Economic Development Impact (JEDI)) that incorporates economic multipliers for jobs, income, and output. Originally developed with state-specific parameters, it...

California's recently enacted Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS, Senate Bill 1078) requires the state's investor-owned utilities (IOUs) to increase the renewable portion of their energy mix, with a goal of 20% renewable energy generation by 2017. Renewable generation projects will compete with...