Category Archives: OpEd

AWEA statement on US election results

“The American Wind Energy Association is ready to work with President-elect Donald Trump and his administration to assure that wind power continues to be a vibrant part of the U.S. economy. An unstoppable shift to a cleaner energy economy is underway, and the fundamentals of wind energy in America are strong. With bipartisan support for … Continue reading AWEA statement on US election results

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Rural America keeps farming the wind

We recently reported on the ways wind power has become an economic powerhouse for rural America, leading some observers to call wind “the new corn.” “One turbine has changed my life,” Ed Woolsey, a fifth-generation Iowa farmer told Bloomberg Government. “Before, I raised corn and soybeans and cattle. Now I don’t. I’m a wind farmer.” … Continue reading Rural America keeps farming the wind

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AWEA ready to work with President-elect Donald Trump to strengthen U.S. economy

The American Wind Energy Association is ready to work with President-elect Donald Trump and his administration to assure that wind power continues to be a vibrant part of the U.S. economy. An unstoppable shift to a cleaner energy economy is underway, and the fundamentals of wind energy in America are strong. With bipartisan support for … Continue reading AWEA ready to work with President-elect Donald Trump to strengthen U.S. economy

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IRENA welcomes Paris Agreement as strong enabler for renewable energy action

International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Director-General Adnan Z. Amin issued the following statement upon the entry into force of the Paris Agreement today: IRENA welcomes the entry into force of the Paris Agreement and congratulates those Parties whose leadership made this a reality. The fact that this happened more quickly than anyone thought possible, sends … Continue reading IRENA welcomes Paris Agreement as strong enabler for renewable energy action

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New partnership helps bring clean power to millions of Americans

  Clean Line Energy and GE Energy Connections have announced a new partnership, agreeing to work together on the Plains & Eastern Clean Line. The project will carry wind-generated electricity from Oklahoma to millions of customers throughout the southeast, and will be the first overhead high voltage direct current project built in the U.S. in … Continue reading New partnership helps bring clean power to millions of Americans

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How to advocate for renewable energy on social media

Rachel Goldstein is a campaign associate for the Wind Energy Foundation. These days, social media channels such as Facebook and Twitter are no longer just for connecting with friends – they are critical tools for communicating good news about your business to the public, decision makers, influencers and potential customers. If you are a developer, … Continue reading How to advocate for renewable energy on social media

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WindEurope highlights merits of auctions in reducing offshore wind energy costs

WindEurope CEO Giles Dickson addressed the annual conference of the Swedish Wind Energy Association (Svensk Windenergi) in Stockholm this week. Sweden is expected to add around 500MW to its 6GW installed base of onshore wind this year. However, new investments are thin on the ground. The country’s joint certificate scheme with Norway, which is used … Continue reading WindEurope highlights merits of auctions in reducing offshore wind energy costs

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IEA predicts strong renewables growth globally, falling costs

The International Energy Agency (IEA) expects renewables to be the largest source of new power capacity additions globally through 2020, thanks to continued reductions in costs for wind and solar energy. IEA’s Renewable Energy Medium-Term Market Report forecasts the global addition of approximately 825,000 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy capacity by 2020, a 42 percent … Continue reading IEA predicts strong renewables growth globally, falling costs

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Building new transmission will bring more low-cost wind power to millions of Americans

Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz said “wind [power] is changing our energy geography” during the Center for American Progress’s Upgrading America’s Infrastructure event in Washington, D.C. today. The event focused on how federal policymakers can update America’s infrastructure to create jobs, protect public health and grow greater access to renewable energy like wind power. In … Continue reading Building new transmission will bring more low-cost wind power to millions of Americans

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Big business hungry for more wind energy

The WindEurope Summit conference session on corporate renewable power purchase agreements in Europe explored the changing models in the energy business. Finance experts and non-industrial investors from Google, ING and BT exchanged views on the potential of corporate renewable PPAs, electricity procurement and the challenges that come with such transactions. Europe today has over 1.2 … Continue reading Big business hungry for more wind energy

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Clean Power Plan stands on firm legal ground, would continue trend of clean energy cutting carbon pollution reliably and cost-effectively

As the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit hears oral arguments today about the merits of the Clean Power Plan, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) rule placing the first-ever federal carbon pollution limits on our nation’s electric power plants, the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) issued the following statement. “The clean-energy train has … Continue reading Clean Power Plan stands on firm legal ground, would continue trend of clean energy cutting carbon pollution reliably and cost-effectively

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Wind power offers new opportunities

A wind turbine is “basically like a locomotive on a stick.” That’s what John Nichols, site manager at Everpower’s Howard Wind Farm in Howard, N.Y., recently told me when explaining his career path. John spent years building subway cars for New York City and Chicago, as well as locomotives and other trains. However, when the … Continue reading Wind power offers new opportunities

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A new way to cut costs of wind energy

Like we did back in March, we’re hitting the road again this week to visit the people who live and work with wind power. And this time, we’re hitting the eastern U.S. We’ll be visiting wind projects across New York and factories that build wind turbine parts in Ohio, learning about jobs and community-bolstering benefits … Continue reading A new way to cut costs of wind energy

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Hill op-ed explains why wind power is a win-win this election season

In an op-ed published today in The Hill, the Christian Coalition and the Young Conservatives for Clean Energy Reform joined AWEA CEO Tom Kiernan in outlining why supporting wind energy should be high up on the list of candidates this fall, especially among conservatives: “…conventional wisdom says Democrats are typically consistent supporters of clean energy, … Continue reading Hill op-ed explains why wind power is a win-win this election season

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Experts anticipate significant continued reductions in wind energy costs

Technology advancements are expected to continue to drive down the cost of wind energy, according to a survey of the world’s foremost wind power experts led by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab). Experts anticipate cost reductions of 24%-30% by 2030 and 35%-41% by 2050, under a median or ‘best guess’ scenario, driven by bigger … Continue reading Experts anticipate significant continued reductions in wind energy costs

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Just how much lower can wind power costs drop?

If you’ve been doing your homework, then by now you should know that wind power in the U.S. is on sale. Thanks to performance-based tax policy (the bipartisan-supported Production Tax Credit) attracting new investment and driving innovation, wind power’s costs dropped by two-thirds over just six years. Now you can start studying for your next … Continue reading Just how much lower can wind power costs drop?

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Guess which country has been running on renewable energy for 76 straight days

  Not too long ago, idea that an entire country could get 100 percent of its electricity from renewable sources for over 2 months was unthinkable. Well, one country just shattered that notion for the second time in two years. Costa Rica’s electricity came from 100 percent clean, reliable renewable energy for 76 days between … Continue reading Guess which country has been running on renewable energy for 76 straight days

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Clean Power Plan no problem for the Northeast

While the Clean Power Plan (CPP) works its way through the court system, many states and grid operators continue to evaluate compliance solutions and electricity system effects. The PJM Interconnection, grid operator for 13 northeast states and Washington, D.C., recently released a report with some encouraging news: meeting the CPP should be a breeze. That’s … Continue reading Clean Power Plan no problem for the Northeast

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7 things you should know about recent polling results and wind energy

Wind power crossed the 75 gigawatt (GW) installed capacity threshold this summer, meaning there’s now enough wind power in the U.S. to supply electricity for 20 million homes. As AWEA CEO Tom Kiernan recently stated in his Huffington Post column, “sometimes the more you know about something, the more you like it. And that’s the … Continue reading 7 things you should know about recent polling results and wind energy

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States are leading winds of change in U.S. renewable energy revolution

Some are calling recent clean-energy actions by New York, Massachusetts and Iowa “game-changers.” That might very well prove true in the medium-term. But we can say with confidence that they are immediate game-advancers. Why? Energy markets are affected by policy, but they are driven by price. The underlying business reality is that the real cost … Continue reading States are leading winds of change in U.S. renewable energy revolution

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