Abstract :
Generation costs for wind power have been dramatically reduced in the UK due to the rapid development of British wind turbine manufacturing capabilities. Machines are now being sold into California at prices around £800/kW installed, with guarantees on performance and reliability. On good windy sites in Britain, these prices correspond to generation costs of around 2 p/kWh, considerably cheaper than other methods of generation such as coal or nuclear power which would cost around 3 p/kWh. As the wind energy industry develops, the same low generation costs will be achievable on a wide spread basis at moderate wind speed sites. Substantial wind resources are available with 20% of all generation as a reasonable initial target and much greater long term prospects. A major development and construction programme on good, windy sites appear to be justified
