DOE Announces Annual Wind Market Reports
On August 23, 2019, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released annual market reports on data and trends in wind technologies, costs, installations, prices, and performance through 2018. The reports cover three sectors: offshore, distributed wind, and utility-scale land-based. According to Under Secretary of Energy, Mark W. Menezes, onshore wind installations continue to proliferate across the United States. Demonstrating support for the Trump Administration, Menezes stated that it has been “proven that we can pursue renewable energy advancements and deployment, particularly wind energy resources, which are predicted to surpass other sources of renewable power generation this year [2019].” During 2018, the utility-scale land-based wind sector had 7,588 megawatts (MW) installed with record low costs and prices. Prepared by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the 2018 Wind Technologies Market Report found that wind industry employment is at an all-time high and provides 6.5% of the nation’s electricity.