QUICK NEWS, February 25: WIND BREAKS MORE RECORDS: TEXAS; WIND BREAKS MORE RECORDS: COLORADO; WIND BREAKS MORE RECORDS: PACIFIC NORTHWEST

WIND BREAKS MORE RECORDS: TEXAS Wind generation records fall in Texas…

Tom Gray, February 22, 2013 (Wind Energy Weekly)

“…[T]he increased generating capacity installed last year continues to make its presence felt…On February 9, a strong weekend cold front that brought needed rain to much of Texas also propelled the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which operates the utility system serving most of the state, to a new wind power record, with wind generation providing 9,481 MW of power at 7:08 p.m…

“Under typical conditions, 1 MW of electricity can power approximately 800 average American homes…The wind generation provided nearly 28 percent of the electricity demand in ERCOT at the time and easily surpassed--by 814 MW, or nearly 10 percent--the previous record of 8,667 MW set on January 29…”

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“…7,205 megawatts (MW) came from West Texas…1,620 MW came from the Texas Gulf Coast…431 MW came from North Texas…225 MW came from South Texas…ERCOT has more than 10,400 MW of commercial wind power capacity, with the addition of 372 MW in December. Wind power comprised 9.2 percent of total energy used in the ERCOT region in 2012, compared to 8.5 percent in 2011.

“The completion of the remainder of the high-voltage transmission projects in the Competitive Renewable Energy Zones by the end of 2013 will continue to improve ERCOT’s ability to move wind power from West Texas to the metropolitan areas where demand on the grid is highest…”

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WIND BREAKS MORE RECORDS: COLORADO Wind generation records fall in…Colorado…

Tom Gray, February 22, 2013 (Wind Energy Weekly)

“…Xcel Energy in Colorado said February 12 that it…achieved a number of significant wind energy milestones [in 2012] that have continued through to this year. The highlight…came January 16 at 1 a.m., when the utility's system set a new record for wind generation of 1,960 MW.

“The new record was spurred in part by the installation and commissioning in 2012 of a 400-MW wind farm built near Limon, Colo., by NextEra Energy Systems…[All the] output of that wind farm is purchased exclusively for Xcel Energy customers…”

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“…Colorado ranked 10th for new wind generation in 2012, adding 496 MW of new wind generating capacity statewide…[W]ind farms serving Xcel Energy Colorado customers generated 5.75 million megawatt-hours of electricity, or more than 16 percent of the approximately 35.9 million megawatt-hours sold during the year. This was a record for the company in Colorado and puts Xcel Energy squarely on the path of meeting its state mandate of 30 percent for wind generation sales by 2020.

“…[That 5.75 million megawatt-hours (MWh) of wind generation] helped reduce carbon dioxide emission by an estimated 4,197,500 tons, or the equivalent emissions for the year of more than 793,000 vehicles. Estimated nitrogen oxide emissions were reduced by 4,310 tons…On April 15, [2012] Xcel Energy was serving [a record of] nearly 57 percent of its total, one-hour demand for electricity with wind generated in the state…”

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WIND BREAKS MORE RECORDS: PACIFIC NORTHWEST New wind output record in Pacific Northwest

Tom Gray, February 22, 2013 (Wind Energy Weekly)

“On February 16, a new record for wind output was set on the main utility system in the [Pacific Northwest’s Bonneville Power Administration] power system. Wind energy output peaked at 4,402 MW at 4:05 PM, breaking the previous record of 4,344 MW that was set on January 29.”

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[Michael Goggin, Manager of Transmission, AWEA:] "The new wind records being set by [this utility system] and others are testament to the fact that large amounts of wind power can be cost-effectively and reliably integrated into utility operations.”

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