Wind power in Iowa
Encyclopedia
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
is a leading U.S. state in wind power
Wind power
Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form of energy, such as using wind turbines to make electricity, windmills for mechanical power, windpumps for water pumping or drainage, or sails to propel ships....
generation of electricity. Wind power in Iowa has 3,675 megawatts (MW) of capacity in 2011, second only to Texas. Wind power accounted for almost 20 percent of the state’s electricity generation in the first quarter of 2011. Since Iowa adopted a renewable energy standard in 1983, the wind power industry has generated almost $5 billion in investment. The 444 MW Rolling Hills Wind Farm in southwestern Iowa is due to be completed in late 2011.
Overview
Installed wind power capacity in Iowa grew quickly in 2008 and 2009. In their end of year report for 2009, the American Wind Energy AssociationAmerican Wind Energy Association
Formed in 1974, the American Wind Energy Association is a Washington, D.C.-based national trade association representing wind power project developers, equipment suppliers, service providers, parts manufacturers, utilities, researchers, and others involved in the wind industry.With over 2,500...
reported that the installed wind power capacity in Iowa was 3670 MW. Only Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
has a higher amount of installed wind power capacity.
Wind power installations increased by 879 MW from a year earlier. In the prior year, 2008, over 1500 MW of wind power generation was installed. Also in 2008, Iowa overtook the historical leader in wind power, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
In 2010 and in 2009, Iowa led the U.S. in the percentage of electrical power generated by wind, at 15.4 percent and 14.2 percent. This was up from 7.7 percent in 2008, as there was a large increase in the installed capacity in 2008. Some of the wind power generated electricity is sold to utility companies in nearby states, such as Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
, and Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
.
Wind farms are most prevalent in the north and west portion of Iowa. Wind maps show the winds in these areas to be stronger on average, making them better suited for the development of wind energy.
Average wind speeds are not consistent from month to month. Wind maps show wind speeds are on average strongest from November through April, peaking in March. August is the month with the weakest average wind speeds. Estimates by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) indicate Iowa has potentially 570,700 Megawatts of wind power using large turbines mounted on 80 meter towers. This places Iowa within the top 10 states in terms of wind energy potential.
The average capacity factor
Capacity factor
The net capacity factor or load factor of a power plant is the ratio of the actual output of a power plant over a period of time and its potential output if it had operated at full nameplate capacity the entire time...
of Iowa wind farms has been estimated as 33.3% by a wind industry consultant. Several of the newer projects are the large 440 MW Rolling Hills project near Massena
Massena, Iowa
Massena is a city in Cass County, Iowa, United States. The population was 414 at the 2000 census. Massena's motto is: "The Home of Friendly People". Massena's sister community is Cumberland, Iowa...
, the Elk Wind Farm near Greely, and Gamesa's Pomeroy project north of Pomeroy
Pomeroy, Iowa
Pomeroy is a city in Calhoun County, Iowa, United States. The population was 662 at the 2010 census.- History :On July 6, 1893, Pomeroy was struck by a tornado that was later estimated to be F5 on the Fujita scale. With a damage path wide and long, the tornado destroyed about 80% of the homes in...
. All were constructed in 2011.
According to the Iowa Office of Energy Independence, lack of transmission line capacity is beginning to restrict further growth of wind farms in the state. A report from the NREL acknowledges that this is a major hurdle to increased wind power development in the U.S. One proposal for expanding the transmission capacity in the Upper Midwest
Upper Midwest
The Upper Midwest is a region in the northern portion of the U.S. Census Bureau's Midwestern United States. It is largely a sub-region of the midwest. Although there are no uniformly agreed-upon boundaries, the region is most commonly used to refer to the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and...
is the Green Power Express. A high voltage DC line that would transmit power from near Sioux City
Sioux City, Iowa
Sioux City is a city in Plymouth and Woodbury counties in the western part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 82,684 in the 2010 census, a decline from 85,013 in the 2000 census, which makes it currently the fourth largest city in the state....
to the Chicago area has also been proposed.
In May 2010, a plan to have 50% of the electricity generated in Iowa come from wind power was announced. Of the wind generated electricity, 40% would be used in state and 60% would be sold to out of state customers.
Windpower industry
A number of companies involved in the windpower industry have office or manufacturing facilities in Iowa. Blades for wind turbines are manufactured in NewtonNewton, Iowa
Newton is a city in and the county seat of Jasper County, Iowa, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 15,254. It is the home of Maytag Dairy Farms and was formerly home to the Maytag Corporation's corporate headquarters until the Whirlpool Corporation acquired it in 2006...
by TPI Composites and in Fort Madison
Fort Madison, Iowa
Fort Madison, situated on the Mississippi River, is a city in and one of the county seats of Lee County, Iowa, United States. The other county seat is Keokuk. The population was 10,715 at the 2000 census...
by Siemens. Turbines are manufactured in Cedar Rapids
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Cedar Rapids is the second largest city in Iowa and is the county seat of Linn County. The city lies on both banks of the Cedar River, north of Iowa City and east of Des Moines, the state's capital and largest city...
by Clipper Windpower
Clipper Windpower
Clipper Windpower is a wind turbine manufacturing company formed in 2001 by James G.P. Dehlsen, who also formed Zond in 1980. In December 2010 Clipper Windpower was acquired by United Technologies Corporation.-History:...
and in West Branch
West Branch, Iowa
West Branch is a city in Cedar and Johnson counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 2,342 as of July 2009, a 7% growth since the 2000 census...
by Acciona
Acciona
Acciona, S.A., is a Spanish conglomerate group dedicated to civil engineering, construction and infrastructure.The company was founded in 1997 through the merger of Entrecanales y Tavora and Cubiertas y MZOV. The company's headquarters is in Alcobendas, Community of Madrid, Spain. The company's U.S...
. Towers are also manufactured in Newton by Trinity Structural Towers. Companies manufacturing other parts for wind turbines are located in Iowa as well.
In addition to manufacturing, various companies support the development of wind power projects.
In late September 2007, Siemens Power Generation
Siemens Power Generation
Siemens Power Generation, Inc is a power generation company based in the United States run by the German Siemens AG Corporation.SPGI was formed by the acquisition and merger of the non-nuclear energy divisions of Westinghouse Electric Company by the Siemens power generation division in 1997; the...
celebrated the grand opening of its new wind turbine blade factory in Fort Madison, on the banks of the Mississippi River. The 311000 square feet (28,892.8 m²) factory is expected to produce 600 wind turbine blades each year and should employ 260 people by year's end. The facility manufactures 148 feet (45.1 m)-long, 12-ton blades for the company's 2.3-MW wind turbines installed in the United States.
Clipper Windpower manufactures its 2.5 MW Liberty wind turbine at its Cedar Rapids location. This model is being used in the Endeavor project in northwest Iowa and in the huge Titan Wind Project
Titan Wind Project
The Titan Wind Project is a proposed 5,050 MW wind farm project, formerly known as Rolling Thunder, based in South Dakota. The project developers, Clipper Windpower and BP Alternative Energy, expect to build Titan in several phases and, when completed, it will be one of the largest wind farms in...
in South Dakota.
The Iowa Office of Energy Independence (OEI) is tasked with determining policy and setting goals towards renewable energy production. The office seeks to coordinate efforts between industry, community leaders, state and local government, and educational institutions to achieve energy policy goals.
List of wind farms in Iowa
The following is an incomplete list of wind farms.- Name, Location
- Top Of Iowa - near Joice, west of I-35
- Intrepid - between Schaller and Storm Lake, north of U.S. 20
- Story County I- north of Colo
- Story County II - south of Humbolt, Story and Hardin counties
- Pomeroy - between Pomeroy and Fonda, along Iowa 7
- Spirit - near Spirit Lake
- Endeavor - near Lake-Park, Harris along Iowa 9
- Century - north of Blairsburg, along U.S. 69, west of I-35
- Buena Vista - Alta, Peterson, Truesdale area
- Victory - near Arcadia and Westside, U.S. 30
- Carroll - northwest of Carroll, near Mt. Carmel & Breda
- Hancock County - Klemme
- Hardin Hilltop - north of Jefferson, 7 towers
- Charles City - west of Charles City
- Walnut - near Walnut (n.e. of Council Bluffs), mostly south of I-80
- Whispering Willow Wind Farm - Franklin County, between Hampton and Iowa Falls
- Adair - South of Adair, near I-80
- Barton -near Kensett, east of I-35
- Crystal Lake - between Buffalo Center and Crystal Lake, Hancock and Winnebago Counties
- Pioneer Prairie - Howard & Mitchell Counties
- Crosswind Energy - near Ruthven, U.S. 18
- North Star - Emmet & Dickensen Counties (Under development)
- Lost Lakes - East of Milford - Dickensen County
- Iowa Lakes Superior - near Superior, U.S. 71
- Iowa Lakes Lakota - near Lakota, Iowa 9
- All other missing wind farms of Iowa http://www.thewindpower.net/wind-farms-list-4-iowa.php
The Spirit, Endeavor, Buena Vista, Lost Lakes, and Crosswind Energy wind farms are all located upon the Coteau des Prairies
Coteau des Prairies
The Coteau des Prairies is a plateau approximately 200 miles in length and 100 miles in width , rising from the prairie flatlands in eastern South Dakota, southwestern Minnesota, and northwestern Iowa in the United States...
, a slightly elevated area that results in the windiest locations in Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
and Iowa. Coteau des Prairies is sometimes referred to as Buffalo Ridge
Buffalo Ridge
Buffalo Ridge is a large expanse of rolling hills in the southeastern part of the larger Coteau des Prairies. It stands 1,995 feet above sea level. The Buffalo Ridge is sixty miles long and runs through Lincoln County, Pipestone County, Murray County, and Nobles County in the southwest...
, which is actually a specific ridge within the area, mostly in Minnesota.
Power from the Iowa Lakes Superior and Iowa Lakes Lakota projects is used by ethanol fuel
Ethanol fuel
Ethanol fuel is ethanol , the same type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages. It is most often used as a motor fuel, mainly as a biofuel additive for gasoline. World ethanol production for transport fuel tripled between 2000 and 2007 from 17 billion to more than 52 billion litres...
plants in their respective communities. This marks the first use of wind power being used to supply energy to produce another renewable energy source.
It has been announced that two large wind farms to be built by Mid-American Energy have
been approved by the Iowa Utilities Board. The two wind farms would have a combined capacity of 1000 MW. Mid-American Energy is owned by Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway
Berkshire Hathaway
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. is an American multinational conglomerate holding company headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, United States, that oversees and manages a number of subsidiary companies. The company averaged an annual growth in book value of 20.3% to its shareholders for the last 44 years,...
company.
See also
- Iowa Stored Energy ParkIowa Stored Energy ParkThe Iowa Stored Energy Park will use electrical energy generated from a large wind farm located in Iowa. This wind power will be used to store compressed air in an underground geologic structure...
- List of wind farms in the United States