Since the 1980’s wind power has seen a rebirth, with a steadily increasing use as a reliable and efficient way to generate electricity. Wind is movement of air; in essence it’s a process powered by the sun. As the earth is unevenly heated by the sun, differences in temperature occur, which in turn result in differences in air pressure, and as air moves about trying to equalize these differences, wind is generated. In turn, electricity is generated by a wind-turbine as moving air hits it’s blades causing them to spin; this in turn drives an electric generator, which then produces electricity.
Wind farms come in many sizes, anywhere from 10 to over 100 turbines. In order to develop such a project many steps are involved, these generally include:
- Prospecting.
- Control of real estate.
- Environmental studies.
- Negotiation of power purchase agreements (PPA).
- Financing
- Engineering
- Procurement and construction (EPC).
- Management and maintenance.
By almost any measure the global wind-power industry is booming. For instance, consider the overall market size, the industry has grown from US$11.8 billion in 2005 to US$17.9 billion in 2006 according to Clean Edge research; and the projected market will more than triple to US$60.8 billion by 2016. In the United States alone, wind was the second-largest source of new generating capacity during 2006, trailing natural gas. During that time more than 2.4 GW of new capacity were installed, which translated into a 27% increase that brought total U.S. wind generation to 11.6 GW.(1)
Europe accounts for approximately 75% of the world’s installed wind-energy capacity, with more than 40GW. Germany leads the world in wind generation, with capacity in excess of 18GW – 33% more than the United States. Currently the hottest growing market in the European Union is Spain, which has vaulted past Denmark and the United States to become the world’s second largest wind generator, with more than 10GW (although the Danes still lead the world in terms of the percentage of power consistently generated by wind – about 20%)(2).
Five kilometers south of Canela Baja, the largest Norwegian energy group, SN Power, is already past the feasibility study and has begun the construction of a 50 MW wind farm coined Totoral, with an investment of over US$100 million.
However, the Canela Baja district is not the only area that is currently being explored for potential wind farms. Two studies, one done by CORFO (1993) and the other by the National Energy Commission (2003) have identified many other areas with great wind potential across the country’s coast (particularly in Regions IV, VII, VIII, XI and XII) as well as other sites near the Andes Mountains. Furthermore, areas such as: the surroundings of Calama and Tal-Tal cities (Region II); Southern Region III; Limarí Valley; areas near Los Vilos and Pichidangui towns; and near to Punta Lengua de Vaca in Region IV; Punta Curaumilla, Cristo Redentor, Laguna Verde in Region V; and the surroundings of Pichilemu city in Region VI all have been pointed out as areas with important wind potential.(3)
(1 - 2) "The Clean Tech Revolution", Ron Pernick and Clint Wilder Copyright 2007
(3) CORFO Website, www.corfo.cl/renovables