Wind power is the way forward
13th March 2019 | Commercial Energy
A wind power plant that is being built near the coast of Yorkshire is breaking records: Hornsea One will be the world’s biggest offshore windfarm and will cover 407 square kilometres. It will be about five times bigger in size than the close-by city of Hull. It will be twice as powerful as the current biggest windfarm and will power a million UK homes. However, this record doesn’t come out of the blue. Wind power is on the rise and with massive investment into the sector and a naturally advantageous climate, the UK is poised to be one of the leading wind power nations.
Wind Power
Wind energy is generated through turbines that work like a reverse electric fan: fans use electricity to make while turbines use wind to generate electricity. An average turbine produces energy around 70-85% of the time. Energy can be store in batteries for later use. According to the UK Met Office which uses long-term averages of “windiness” indicators it is reasonable to say that the United Kingdom is one of the windiest countries of Europe.
The advantages of wind power are massive: electricity-generating turbines produce zero carbon emissions and are clean renewables. The only drawback is a danger to bird and bat life, but it can be argued that emissions of fossil-fuel plants and their impact on the climate have a much bigger effect on wildlife in general. There are lot of points suggesting that it bests other renewable sources. Hydro power in comparison requires the damming of rivers and streams, which can disrupt the habitats of animals, fish and plants. One of the big disadvantages of solar power compared to wind power is the average cost per kWh. Due to the high price of solar panels the world average is $10 cents for solar and only $6 cents for wind (and only $4.7 cents for hydro) according to the 2017 International Renewable Energy Agency report (using levelized cost of energy).
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