WIND AT 70 GW, NEARS 5% OF U.S. POWER

American wind power breezes past 70-gigawatt milestone

December 21, 2015 (American Wind Energy Association)

“American wind power just passed the 70 gigawatt (GW) mark, meaning enough wind turbine capacity is now installed to supply over 19 million typical American homes with low-cost electricity…[It also means there’s now enough wind power installed in America to light the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree for over 440,000 years…[or] drive 26 million electric cars around the world…Last week, Congress passed a multi-year extension of the performance-based PTC and alternative Investment Tax Credit as part of the government spending bill, securing the predictable business environment needed to keep U.S. factories open and further scale up American wind power…There are currently over 50,000 operating wind turbines in the U.S., at more than 980 utility-scale wind farms across 40 states and Puerto Rico…[A recent Department of Energy study found] wind energy is poised to double from nearly five percent of U.S. electricity today to 10 percent by 2020, and double again to 20 percent by 2030…” click here for more

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