December 22, 2006—Results of a new study show that, under the right policies, utilities can incorporate wind power into their resource portfolio, comprising up to one-fourth of their delivered energy, without sacrificing reliability and with minor costs for absorbing the wind.
The Midwest Wind Integration Study, which was required by the Minnesota legislature in 2005 to evaluate reliability and other impacts of higher levels of wind generation and carried out independently by EnerNex Corporation and WindLogics, found that the total integration cost for up to 25% wind energy delivered to all Minnesota customers is less than one-half cent ($0.0045 cents) per kWh of wind generation.
The 25% penetration level of wind — equivalent to that provided in the US today by nuclear power (20%), or natural gas and hydropower combined (25%) — is predicated on operating in the Midwest Independent System Operator (MISO) service area, control area consolidation (currently underway in MISO), geographic diversity of the wind power, and adequate transmission.
The Minnesota study is the latest in a series examining how utilities can manage ever-larger amounts of wind power on their systems, and it comes at a time of strong growth for the wind industry, according to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).
For more information, see the AWEA Web site.
