STM Case Study – 7Technology Roadmapping for Wind Energy: Case of the Pacific Northwest

Objective of the Study

To analyze the influencing factors in Adoption of wind energy in the Pacific NW by

residential, commercial and industrial consumers and the technologies driving it.

Technology roadmap for wind energy sector of Pacific NW, which consists of four layers; market drivers, products, technologies, and technology components.

A general overview of the current situation, products, technologies and future speculations is also presented in this paper.

Wind Energy

Wind power has been used from ancient times for grinding grains, sailing ships and pumping water for irrigation purposes.

Presently wind energy is the fastest growing renewable energy resource having global installed capacity (both onshore and offshore) of 121 GW.

Several European countries are obtaining 10% or more electricity from wind energy.

Considering the climate and geographic location of pacific NW there is a huge potential for wind energy.

Electricity Generation (Sector – Wise)

Fuel Mix for US Electricity Generation (EPA, 2011).

Literature Review

A detailed literature review is carried out and data is gathered from different sources including relevant scholarly journals and technical reports, Websites of utility and distribution companies.

Challenges presented by wind energy are pointed out by many researchers.

There is a need for new organization structures for many phases of the energy generation and transmission to support this structure.

1. Organizational & Technological requirements

Following are the major wind integration challenges identified in the report of US Department of Energy (DOE):

a. Investment in the Transmission System.

b.Electric load balancing areas.

c. Energy Storage.

2.2 Energy Policy and regulations

Governmental policies, legislations, strategies and regulations play a significant role in providing favorable environment for the development of renewable energy resources.

Systems are needed which encourage a diversity of investment in renewable energy from local as well as institutional sources.

Germany, Spain, China etc have successfully implemented renewable energy policy.

Contd…

Feed-In-Tariff (FIT) attributed as main success factor in Germany and Spain.

India has also launched its Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission in the year 2008-09 for promoting renewable energy under MNRE.

Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) in the USA mandates that a certain %age of energy to be sourced from renewable energy sources.

Similarly India has RPO (Renewable Purchase Obligation).

2.3 Public Perception of wind energy

Wind Energy being an environment friendly also create noise, can obstruct view and potentially disrupt the local wildlife and fauna.

Therefore before a project is being undertaken, local public concerns & perception should also be addressed to minimize any potential resistance.

In general, it seems that wind farms that are away from residential areas and have less impact on the natural environment are desirable

2.4 Technology Roadmap

A future based strategic planning device that outlines the goals, barriers, strategies necessary for achieving a given vision of technological advancement and market penetrations.

Main objectives of using roadmaps in renewable energy sector are to establish:

long-term goals and targetscreate a common vision, assess of promising

technology alternatives

Identify markets drivers, gaps, key challenges and barriers, formulate strategies and action plans to overcome all those barriers

Provide guidelines for policy makers and decision makers

Prioritize R&D projects, give direction to the energy sector, and improve communication and coordination for technology development in order to increase contribution of renewable resources in future energy markets

Wind Energy

Technology roadmap has been developed for wind energy sector, which consists of four layers: -

a. Market drivers

b.Products

c. Technologies

d.Technology components

A. Market Drivers

Identification of market drivers is the first step towards development of the roadmap.

Market drivers are categorized into four categories;

a. Fossil fuel cost

b.Environmental issues

c. Government policies and

d.Business opportunities.

B. Products

Focussed on products that are proficient in both the industrial and residential sectors.

a. Industrial / Utility: - Horizontal Axis Wind Turbinea. Eg: - 2.5 MW, 3.6 MW from GE

b. Residential: - Small Wind Turbinesa. Eg: - Bergley XL.1 producing 1600 Watts, Quiet Revolution

(QR5) for low wind speeds producing 6kW – 10kW

QR5 (VAWT) Bergley XL.1 (HAWT)

C. Technologies

The wind industry is growing in leaps and bounds and new technologies are introduced very frequently.

The technology level in the roadmap discusses technologies that are used in small and large turbines, onshore and offshore applications, and future turbine technologies.

There is a significant increase in capacity and height of wind turbines and rotor diameters with time.

It has resulted in increased capacity of the wind turbine.

Contd….

It happened due to technology improvements, refined design tools and the need to reduce the cost of energy

Wind Energy roadmap for Pacific NW

Based on the above the roadmap has been shown in next slide.

The roadmap has four tiers, each having sub categories to elaborate key points of each tier.

Roadmap also highlights the linkages among various components of market drivers, products, technology and technology components.

So all roadmap tiers are linked together to display a connection and expected advancement in each area, based on a 20 year timeline.

Conclusion

Energy is required to maintain the standard of living but at the same time it is required to avoid further degradation of the environment.

The states in Pacific NW have an opportunity to lead the way in bringing the renewable energy revolution in the energy sector.

In the Pacific NW region good quality wind resource and plenty of land is available for harvesting wind energy.

The wind energy technology has crossed the initial teething problems and now it is a strong alternative energy resource.

Conclusion

Needs and technologies are evolving with time.

It is therefore critical to regularly review and update the technology roadmap.

It is important to establish road mapping as an ongoing process rather than one time activity and roadmap should be a living document.

Effective utilization of wind energy technology roadmap can contribute to the overall efforts towards creating a sustainable energy future of Pacific NW.