Don’t Call it a Wind Farm, It’s an EcoPower Centre: Canada’s Largest Wind Project (200 MW) Opens

Can someone answer me a question. What is the total energy requirement in megawatts per day or even per year for country like Canada or the USA. I have searched but can't find it. I don't understand when I see news of 200 MWs here and 500 MWs there how this relates to the total energy needs.

What a beautiful sight those fields with wind turbines are. It's good to know that more of Ontario's power will come from green electricity sources, thanks to this and other wind installations going up all over the province. Ontario has an insidious mix of coal and nuclear as part of its electrical grid backbone, and they've recently announced a huge expansion of nuclear facilities.

But if you really want to help move us to a completely renewable electrical grid, it's best to sign up directly with a green supplier, such as Bullfrog Power, which I've bought electricity from for several years. With green suppliers you are certain that your money is paying for renewable electricity, and you know that it works because every month or so, as they sign on new customers, they announce yet another partnership with some company planning to put up more windmills!

the newly finished Melancthon EcoPower Centre, developed by Canadian Hydro, is Canada’s largest wind farm it’s still worth nothing.

Sure hope that last word is a typo!

@ Mark

http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/international/electricitygeneration.html

The first table should do the trick.

I don't know about total usage, but a good rule of thumb is 1Mw equals the usage of 1000 homes. This is not entirely accurate but close enough.

Hey Mark

http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epa/epa_sum.html

says 789,475 MW peak demand.

Remember these wind farms, even though they say 200 MW that is only true when the wind is blowing with enough force and the whole wind farm is online and operational. For the utility I work at last month our wind farms generated 40% of their potential in a given month. Eg, for the farm above, that would mean its potential megawatt hours would be 200 mw * 24 hours a day * days in month, or for october 148,800 mwh. Now take that number times 40% and you get 59520. The question is what covers that missing generation when the wind isn't blowing? That is where natural gas, coal, hydro, etc come in to play for us.

I'm happy to hear that more renewable energy
systems are being constructed now. You
should see the wind mills in near Palms Springs CA.
Wind mills are seen in many other locations
in California too.

thanks from tony

I'd like to know what their impact assessments are - I work on a 400 MW farm in TX that has 200 turbines... we're in the boonies, ecologically speaking, so a comparison would be neat.

Worth *noting* - yes - worth duplication, take your time. See how the first five years go.

This wind farm by the numbers above will put out 22% of the theoretical energy it is capable of. The nucs run about 80 - 90 % day and night. Given these numbers, to replace the energy of say Darlington Nuclear, you would need 65 such farms; Great idea, but not the final solution for all seasons.

I have high hopes for our alternative energy future in the U.S., just as long as we get the auto companies whipped into shape.