Why does wind energy cost more than energy PNM already produces?
The “fuel” for wind turbines is free. The cost of wind energy is determined by the cost of buying, constructing and maintaining the wind turbines; transmission and distribution costs to bring the energy to the point of use; and the cost of leasing and maintaining the land where the energy is produced. Altogether, this cost is still slightly higher than the cost of other resources PNM uses to generate electricity. The good news is that the cost of wind energy has dropped by about 80 percent during the past 20 years, and projections are that it will continue to go down as turbines are made more efficiently and manufacturing costs continue to decrease.
