Kenya Will Have a Wind Farm in 2012

A Kenyan firm plans to produce 300 MW of electricity by 2012 by harnessing renewable wind power in the north of the country, its director told Reuters. Once completed, the project could meet about a quarter of Kenya's total energy demand, which stands at some 1,200 MW, just slightly below the installed capacity.

The government is looking at developing "green" energy sources, such as wind and geothermal, to meet demand that is growing at around 8 percent a year. The total project cost would be about $760 million and that the African Development Bank (AfDB) had indicated it would finance 30 percent of that.

The rest of the financing would come from locally syndicated bank loans and international investment banks in South Africa, the Middle East and possibly the United States. The company plans to put up 360 wind turbines that will each generate 850 kw, to be constructed by Denmark's Vestas Wind Systems A/S. Each turbine that is set up will come online immediately.

This is a great initiave by a developing country like Kenya. In spite of their limitation, they are still willing to build something advance like this that will contribute positively to the environment. Other countries should follow this excellent example. Complete news can be read from Environmental News Network.

A New Wind Turbine Invention

Traditional wind farms require constant wind speed and direction. Moreover, they also tend to be big, rural, expensive and controversial.

The Chicago company, Aerotecture, has taken a different if not opposite approach. Their turbine is designed to not only work in swirling urban wind, but to be incorporated into building structures themselves. By using a helical blade, this system can capture variable wind directions and speed. The lightweight and versatile design allows for units to be used vertically or horizontally as well as daisy-chained together for more power. Aerotecture also claims they are quiet, safe (for birds) and inexpensive.

Aeroturbines are wind turbines designed for urban settings. Invented by University of Illinois industrial design professor, Bil Becker, Aeroturbines are a new development in wind turbine technology. Aeroturbines can be installed on existing rooftops or built into the architecture of new buildings to provide clean renewable electricity at its site of consumption. Aeroturbines are uniquely suited to urban environments because they are:

- Noise and vibration-free
- Safe for birds
- Able to utilize multi-directional and gusting winds
- Self-regulating (no overspeed protection required)
- Low maintenance
- Made from low-cost and readily available materials

Aerotecture Paradigm:

- where wind farms are big, we are small
- where wind farms are rural, we are urban
- where wind farms avoid buildings, we attach to them
- where wind farms seek single monster units, we deploy many units
- where wind farms are hundreds of miles from their 'users', we are right there

The structural features of the Aeroturbine allow for its easy integration into new or existing buildings: the modular/stackable cages are additive and can be mounted in a vertical, horizontal, or diagonal orientation.

For more info about this invention, you can visit Aerotecture.

A U.S. Town Use Wind to Power All Its Electricity Demand

Rock Port, Mo., has four wind turbines to supply electricity to its 1300 residents. This is the first community in the United States that operates completely on wind power. Northwest Missouri has the state's highest concentration of wind resources and there are some locations that are really suitable for utility-scale wind development.

The four turbines actually are part of 75 turbines located in three counties used to harvest the power of the wind. The turbines also offer another benefit as they bring more than $1.1 million every year in the form of real estate taxes, paid by Wind Capital Group, a wind energy developer based in St. Louis. Landowners also get benefit from leasing part of their property for the turbines.

The turbines can provide service for at least 20 years so it can be expected that there will be no increase in rates for the next 15 to 20 years. The turbines also could attract tourists to the area.

This is definitely good news and it is great to see that people have an initiative to harvest this renewable power. The source of the news is First U.S. Town Powered Completely By Wind.