High-Capacity Factor Wind Energy Systems

Abstract

Wind-generated electricity can be fundamentally transformed from an intermittent resource to a baseload power supply. For the case of long distance transmission of wind electricity, this change can be achieved at a negligible increase or even a decrease in per unit cost of electricity. The economic and technical feasibility of this process can be illustrated by studying the example of a wind farm located in central Kansas and a 2000 km, 2000 megawatt transmission line to southern California. Such a system can have capacity factor of 60 percent, with no economic penalty and without storage. With compressed air energy storage (CAES) (and with a negligible economic penalty), capacity factors of 70–95 percent can be achieved. This strategy has important implications for the development of wind energy throughout the world since good wind resources are usually located far from major demand centers.