Wind power can deliver energy without sacrificing reliability, also costing negligibly for the wind absorption! This is what a new study by the Midwest Wind Integration Study has found.
The Minnesota legislature needed this study in 2005, and the report on it has been sent out by the American Wind Energy Association. Although these findings are applicable to Minnesota only, the idea of delivering wind energy economically to utility companies can also be applied effectively and successfully to other Midwestern and Plains states rich with abundant wind.
The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) Deputy Policy Director Mike Jacobs said,
The study is especially significant both because of the amount of wind involved and the fact that it was sanctioned by the Minnesota legislature.
The Minnesota study shows that, when the wind generation is spread around the state, and MISO markets and operators do what they do best, integration costs are a small concern. Like the studies that have come before, this report shows the relative ease in absorbing the wind — opening the way for wind energy’s benefits to be reaped on a large scale for consumers, and for our economy, environment, and energy security.
