Are wind turbines very inefficient, is it true that they are only 20% efficient?
Efficiency and capacity factor are two different things. Wind turbines are very efficient when it comes to converting wind into power during the time wind blows. For a project to be economically viable, its capacity factor has to be at least 30%, meaning it should produce enough power in a year, as if it was running at its full capacity at least 30% of the time in a year. At places in Canada this capacity factor is even higher than 40%. If one was to look at Lennox Gas/Oil Electricity Generating Plant, one would notice that the generators are not running all the time during the year – infact they only run when the power is needed – as such it does not mean that they are inefficient, and the same rationale holds for wind turbines whose operation displaces the need to ramp up power from coal or gas fired generation. 26) I hear that Politicians are biased towards green energy, Ministry of Environment’s noise guidelines are inaccurate, Ministry of Environment’s methodology of accounting fo
Related Questions
- Aren wind turbines inefficient because the wind doesn blow all the time? How can they be considered a reliable source of electricity?
- Because they don’t produce all the time, aren’t wind turbines an inefficient way to get our electricity?
- Are wind turbines inefficient? Is it true that they only operate 30% of the time?
