Future of Wind Energy

The future of wind energy seems bright.  Wind energy has been one of the fastest growing sources of renewable energy over the past few decades.

The United States increased from an installed wind power capacity of 2,472 MW in 1999 to 43,000 MW in 2011.  This was a substantial increase in wind capacity power in the country for only a few years time.

The cost of a wind turbine has been steadily decreasing over the last decade, leading us to believe that the cost will continue to decrease in the future.  Also, new technological advances in wind energy seem inevitable, given how fast all other technologies continue to advance.

Many predict that in the near future, wind energy will be the most affordable type of renewable energy.  The future commercialization of wind turbines is hard to predict.  Like many other technological products of the past, wind turbines may explode into the marketplace at a moment, perhaps from a new technological refinement or a lower production cost.

Barack Obama and the United States government are taking a strong stance on the future of wind energy, along with other sources of renewable energy.  In 2009 Barack Obama signed $1.6 billion in investment tax credits for renewable energy sources.  This bill also includes the long term goal of having 25% of America’s electricity come from renewable energy sources by 2025.

The year 2025 seems like a long time away to only have 25% of America’s electricity come from renewable energy sources.  However, when you think about the history of other technological booms – the home computer, the internet, smart phones, etc – the new future of wind energy could be upon us must faster than you think.