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Wind Powers Brit Energy and Jobs- New Wind Mapping Technology Available

Britain is pushing ahead with a huge expansion of offshore wind farms which could supply green power to more than 3 million households and create 20,000 new jobs, the government said Monday.

Reuters in Wired.com

The government is inviting companies to bid to build new farms, some of which are likely to be 10 times the size of the first scheme under construction in Wales, Patricia Hewitt, Secretary of State for Trade an Industry said.

"The first wind farm has 30 turbines. Developers are saying they want to build much, much larger offshore wind farms — up to 300 turbines," Hewitt told the BBC.

The program could involve an investment of 6 billion pounds ($9.76 billion) and add 6,000 megawatts of generation capacity.

Firms have three months to submit bids for schemes in three coastal areas: the Wash off the east coast of England, the Thames Estuary east of London and the northwest coast of England and Wales.

In the first round two years ago, the Crown Estate, which manages Britain’s seabed, gave the go-ahead to 17 sites with a capacity of 1,500 megawatts.

Two of these projects, North Hoyle off the north Wales coast, and Scroby Sands, near Great Yarmouth in east England, are under construction.

The government sees encouraging offshore wind as key to meeting its target of providing 10 percent of Britain’s power from green sources by 2010, up from 3 percent at present.

A recent study commissioned by the government showed offshore wind could supply between 4 and 7 percent of the UK’s power by 2010.

Industry watchers say the government will struggle to meet its target, partly because wind farms have faced difficulty obtaining finance and getting planning permission.

"Although the timetable is ambitious, basically developers are telling us it is realistic," said Hewitt.

Hewitt said schemes approved in the second round could create 20,000 jobs in manufacturing and running the plants.

The Crown Estate said in March that 29 firms had submitted draft proposals for wind farms at 70 sites ahead of the formal launch of the second round.

Most of the schemes will come on stream in around 2008, in a push the government hopes will help it meet its 2010 target.

Industry body the British Wind Energy Association, which published a poll showing three quarters of bill payers supported an increase in the use of wind power, welcomed the expansion.

"We have the best offshore wind resource in Europe and today’s announcement signals that we are now on track to seriously develop it," said Marcus Rand, chief executive of the association, said in a statement.

"Successful projects from this round could account for half the government’s 10 percent target." Britain’s new push coincided with research from Deutsche Bank which predicted that wind power capacity worldwide may double in the next three to four years.

"Subsidies such as tax credits in the U.S. and fixed-price tariffs (in) Europe have (meant) profits for utilities with wind investments," the broker said. "Government-sponsored renewable targets are also providing an incentive for development.

Deutsche listed the biggest global power utility names in wind as Spain’s Iberdrola, FPL Group of the United States, British utilities Scottish Power and Scottish & Southern Energy, and Enel of Italy.

For Iberdrola, with the biggest wind exposure, wind energy’s contribution to profitability could reach as high as 15 percent by 2005, Deutsche said.

http://wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,59621,00.html

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Wind mapping tech to be exported

Peter Jean Wired.com

AUSTRALIAN technology which maps wind could soon be used in 81 countries.

The technology was developed by Canberra scientists Keith Ayotte and Nathan Steggel, and will be marketed by wind energy company WindLab Systems, which has been formed with government support.

The technology can help prospectors find the windiest spots to build wind farms and identify how hot air accelerates and decelerates over complex land features and vegetation.

WindLab’s interim chief executive Gareth Johnston said 87 per cent of global windpower capacity was developed in Europe, but there was an interest overseas in using Australian technology.

"Our technology currently ranks at number one in the world," Mr Johnston said.

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He said the company was finalising agreements to provide wind energy consulting services in countries including Britain and Ireland.

"We’re currently finalising an agreement to offer turn-key services to 81 countries," Mr Johnston said.

He said the company’s technology could be used to find suitable locations for wind farms away from overdeveloped coastal areas, where the farms are often located.

"Our technologies have found several thousand megawatts of resources in land away from the scenic areas, offering developers new opportunities to get away from these cumulative impacts and some of the negatives of wind energy development," he said.

WindLab Systems was formed with the support of CSIRO and the government-funded business incubator, Epicorp.

"Being able to combine a mix of leading technology with commercial applications is very exciting indeed," Senator Richard Alston said.

"Identifying technology for locating the optimum sites for wind farms is something that Australia has a very good opportunity to lead the world on."

http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,6750175%5E15321%5E%5Enbv%5E15306,00.html

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