U.S. wind power accounted for 6 percent of the nation’s total electricity generation capacity in 2012, up from 3% in 2011. Fear that the wind tax credit would not be renewed by the end of the year drove completion of many projects, reports Bloomberg.
As a result a record 13.2 GW of turbines were installed last year including 5.5 GW in December, the most ever for a single month. Total wind capacity is about 60 GW.
The credit was ultimately extended for another year; it covers wind farms that start construction in 2013. However, uncertainty about whether the credit would be extended means there are not a backlog of new projects.
Asset financing for U.S. wind farms dropped to $4.3 billion in the second-half of 2012, from $9.6 billion in the first six months of last year.
Equipment prices for wind have also fallen by more than 21 percent since 2010, while the performance of turbines has risen. This has resulted in a 21 percent decrease in the overall cost of electricity from wind for a typical U.S. project since 2010, according to Bloomberg’s New Energy Finance.
To read the original Bloomberg article cited in this story, click here