The IRS has just taken authority that is only granted to Congress: determining subsidies that cost taxpayers money. Congress ruled earlier this year to end on subsidies for wind as a form of alternative energy by bringing the federal Wind Production Tax Credit to a close at end of this year.
After years of subsidizing wind power and over $120 billion in wasted efforts, even Congress had given up on wind power.
Instead, the Internal Revenue Service has taken the budget impasse at the Congressional level to grab power and decided to cost US taxpayers an additional $12 billion EACH year with a ruling that tax credits would be honored for any facility that goes into production before 2016.
“The IRS’s decision is wrong and it reflects a sad truth: Renewable energy projects that rely on the production tax credit are not profitable on their own,” Kansas Republican Rep. Mike Pompeo was quoted. He continued to say “A company should have customers, not political patrons. These projects, which lack efficiency and market demand, can only work if taxpayers pay for them.”
Politics aside, wind power is not a viable alternative energy.
Let’s explore this further.
Alternative energy has a huge impact on resiliency. Although this may not come as a surprise to many of our readers – the facts about wind power may shock you.
Even at Resilient Communities, we have often placed solar and wind power into the same “category.” In other words, either one works depending on location and personal preference. But when we take a closer look at wind power, does it really stack up against solar PV?
The answer is no. Wind power is almost never the better option. Here’s why.
Without getting into the technical details of various output parameters, the fact is that wind power is both less efficient and less reliable than solar or even fossil fuel-based power generation.
This is especially noticeable on smaller, residential sized systems. The sun is a very consistent power source; wind fluctuates constantly. Changes in direction and wind speed have a significant effect on the overall efficiency of a system.
Turbulence created by trees, houses, and other large objects also affects wind turbines. It is not uncommon for a wind turbine to spend more time “chasing the wind” than it does actually making power.
For the most part, residential systems wind power generation costs about the same as solar PV.
The difference is that wind power relies on moving parts that need replacement much more frequently. This factor is exacerbated by frequently changing wind directions and turbulence created by buildings near the turbine.
The cost of implementing wind power is not expected to fall much. Wind power is actually considered by many experts to be a relatively mature market and is becoming more expensive.
As you can see from this graph, the price of wind energy has been climbing steadily for nearly a decade. Solar, on the other hand, becomes less expensive every year from both a consumer and utility perspective.
In just the last couple of years, the price of solar has dropped to less than $1 per watt in many cases. Coupled with micro-inverter technology, solar PV is expected to significantly outperform alternatives such as wind power in the future.
Interestingly enough, a US Department of Energy report shows that wind power received $5 billion in government subsidies in 2011 compared to only $1 billion awarded to solar PV installation.
This means that wind power (which is less efficient) requires massive subsidy to remain competitive with solar power; let alone fossil-fuel based power generation which has historically been the least expensive option.
Simply put, wind power is more expensive and this gap is expected to increase in the future as governments look for new ways to cut spending and eliminate subsidy programs altogether.
Location & Size
Many of us have seen large wind farms in the California desert. This environment is perfect for wind power because there is no interference or turbulence created by other objects. Also, don’t forget that these turbines are massiv