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According to a recent report, the market for wind turbines will continue to grow through 2015, driven by new generation additions as well as replacement of smaller, older turbines with larger, more-efficient turbines.
Pike Research, a clean tech market intelligence firm, forecasts that the turbine market will resume its growth in 2011, following three years of stagnation, and cumulative wind turbine deployments will exceed 40,000 units in North America during the period from 2010–2015.
Particularly in the 21st century, geosynthetic stabilization and reinforcement has been essential in the building of construction and maintenance roads for wind farms.
“The year 2009 will be a defining moment for wind power markets around the world,” said Pike’s managing director Clint Wheelock. “The global economic crisis that began in late 2008 has thrown the industry into confusion, along with most global industries. Still, we see cause for optimism in the longer term as capital markets recover and the regulatory environment improves for wind energy.”
In addition to new deployments, another growth driver will be the replacement of aging turbines with newer, larger, more efficient models. Pike Research’s forecasts say by 2015 45% of all turbine installations in North America will be replacements.
Texas home to the world’s largest wind farm
As evidence of the growth of the wind energy market in North America, E.ON recently announced that it put the world’s largest wind farm into operation in Roscoe, Texas. After a construction period of just over two years, 627 wind turbines, with an installed capacity of approximately 780 MW are now operating. They can generate electricity for more than 230,000 homes. The wind farm consists of four sections and covers an area of about 150 square miles.