Wind energy: Benefits and challenges of this renewable energy source

To meet global climate targets, the world needs to urgently transition away from fossil fuels to renewable energy. Renewable energy like wind, solar and hydropower have many benefits, but also some challenges. Read on to learn more about the advantages and disadvantages of wind energy, and how wind energy works.

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What is wind energy?

Wind power or wind energy is a form of renewable energy that harnesses the power of the wind to generate electricity. The energy is generated from the wind using wind turbines – blades arranged in a fan-like shape at the top of a tall tower. Harnessing energy from the wind is not a new technology; in fact, it could even be thousands of years old.

The term wind farm is used to describe a group of wind turbines. Wind turbines can be installed on land – referred to as onshore wind, or out at sea – referred to as offshore wind.

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How does wind energy work?

Wind energy is generated through wind turbines – blades arranged in a fan-like shape at the top of a tall tower. A wind turbine turns wind energy into electricity using the aerodynamic force from the rotor blades, which works like an airplane wing or helicopter rotor blade.

When the propeller-like blades of a wind turbine are hit by the wind, they act like airplane wings causing lift. They spin around the central axis and create mechanical energy from the movement of air. The turbine blades spin a rotor inside the central shaft of the turbine. Machinery inside the turbine next to the rotor converts the mechanical energy into electrical energy (electricity) using a magnetic field around an electrical coil, sometimes via a gearbox.

From there, the generated electricity travels by cables to offshore and onshore substations, which connect to the electricity grid where it is delivered to homes and businesses.

What are the advantages of wind energy?`

One of the main advantages of wind energy is that it has among the lowest carbon emissions of any form of energy. It is a clean source of power and causes no air or water pollution. Wind power is a renewable energy source, meaning that unlike fossil fuels it will never run out.

Another advantage of wind energy is that the cost of installing onshore and offshore wind turbines continues to drop. Onshore wind especially is among the cheapest sources of electricity. Furthermore, once it has been installed, the energy from wind is very low cost. And wind turbines can work almost anywhere.

Explore some of the advantages of wind energy below:

1. Wind energy is good for the climate

A key advantage of wind energy is that it is a clean, renewable form of energy, which during operation produces virtually no carbon dioxide. It also emits no sulphur dioxide, the cause of acid rain. While some emissions of these gases will take place during the design, manufacture, transport and erection of wind turbines, enough electricity is generated from a wind farm within a few months to compensate for these emissions, according to Friends of the Earth UK. When wind farms are dismantled (usually after 20 years of operation) they leave no legacy of pollution for future generations.

2. Wind energy is affordable and readily available

Wind energy is one of the best-developed of the newer renewable energy technologies and it is available now. Wind power relies on relatively simple mechanical processes, once built the running costs are very low, and it has benefited from recent technological advances in the aeronautics industry. The fuel is free and inexhaustible and there are no waste products. This means it can compete with the cost of energy based on conventional fossil fuels.

The cost of generating electricity from the wind has fallen dramatically over the past few years. Energy from the wind will become even cheaper in the future as greater experience is gained in manufacturing and developing this relatively new technology. Also, when the full costs of the environmental damage of fossil fuels and nuclear power are taken into account, wind energy stands out as an even better deal.

3. Innovation in manufacturing and recycling of wind turbines

Around 85% of a wind turbine is made from recyclable materials. But the blades are made from a few different materials blended together, so they can withstand all weather. Siemens and other companies are deploying recyclable turbine blades, and indeed the industry in Europe has called for a ban on landfilling by 2025 to accelerate the trend. Companies are also working on ways to recycle blades that have reached the end of their useful life as turbine blades. Using the materials to make cement reduces CO2 emissions by over a quarter. They are also recycled into bridges, unique outdoor furniture, and artwork.

4. Wind energy generates a lot of jobs

The expansion of the wind energy industry could create 3.3 million jobs in the next five years, according to analysis from industry body the Global Wind Energy Council. In the UK, studies have found that renewable energy can create three times as many jobs compared to fossil fuels.

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What are the disadvantages of wind energy?

A key advantage of wind energy is that it has among the lowest carbon emissions of any form of energy, and there’s no air or water pollution from producing power. However, even with wind energy, as for all renewable energy sources, there will be some environmental impact and consequences for people and communities. It is therefore important that any new wind energy projects priorities the protection of nature and the needs of local communities.

When thinking about the pros and cons of wind energy, it is also important to consider how the energy transition will impact the people who work in the oil and gas industry, and the communities that will be affected by the transition.

Delve into some of the disadvantages of wind energy below:

1. The impact on nature and biodiversity must be minimised

Wind turbines need space. A typical wind farm of about 20 turbines extends over an area of about 1-2 square kilometres. But only a small fraction of this land, about 1-2 per cent, is occupied by the turbines and access tracks. This means that onshore wind farms can be built on farms that can keep growing crops or grazing animals around them. And they can be built out at sea.

The protection of birds and other wildlife is an important consideration when planning wind farms. However, it’s worth noting that more birds are killed by cats, buildings and fossil fuel plants than wind turbines. Furthermore, technological innovation means that wind turbines are much quieter than they used to be.

2. New wind energy projects must consider the needs and rights of local people

When planning new renewable energy projects, the needs and rights of impacted communities must be considered, and local people must be consulted. This hasn’t always been the case. In Norway, the Sami people have been fighting for many years to hold the government accountable for violating their human rights when installing the Storheia and Roan wind farms in Fosen in central Norway. The energy transition cannot happen at the expense of human rights or indigenous rights.

3. How does wind energy work when the wind doesn’t blow?

As with solar energy, a challenge with wind energy is that we can’t control when the wind will blow or the sun will shine. But installing electricity storage and upgrading the grid to allow more connections with other countries will help ensure that we have reliable renewable energy provision at all times. An advantage with wind energy is that the turbines can operate in all temperatures, meaning that it can compensate for hydropower when there’s a lack of rain or cold weather, and solar power in the winter months.

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The importance of a just energy transition

Climate change is the biggest challenge facing humanity. Responding to this challenge will require ambitious and rapid action at all levels of society.

Transitioning away from fossil fuels won’t be easy, but is necessary to avoid the worst consequences of climate change. In addition to reducing emissions and being less harmful for nature and biodiversity, the transition towards a more sustainable energy system is also an opportunity to create a fairer, more democratic energy system that benefits workers and local communities.

To achieve a just energy transition the transition to an environmentally sustainable economy must happen without leaving workers in polluting industries behind. People must be supported to secure good quality jobs and decent livelihoods when polluting industries decline.

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What is the difference between onshore and offshore wind energy?

Onshore wind energy

Onshore wind refers to wind turbines placed in groups on land. You’ll often see onshore wind farms in fields or more rural areas, as they’re usually constructed in less-populated areas where buildings and obstacles don’t interrupt the air. Onshore wind is one of the least expensive forms of renewable energy, much cheaper than offshore wind. Onshore wind farms can be constructed in months, at scale, and are relatively cheap and cost-effective to maintain compared with offshore.

Offshore wind energy

Offshore wind refers to wind turbines placed in clusters out at sea. Higher wind speeds and consistency in direction means offshore installations require fewer turbines to produce the same amount of energy as onshore wind farms. As these are often located miles from the coast, there’s less chance of conflict with local people. Offshore wind farms require more complex infrastructure to support them and, as a result, are more expensive to construct and harder to maintain. The amount of investment required, means that offshore wind is usually corporately owned as opposed to owner or operated by local cooperatives, or individuals.

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The future of wind energy as a renewable energy source

More than 80 percent of the world's energy use today comes from fossil fuel energy sources such as coal, oil and gas. In order to slow climate change, these energy sources must be phased out quickly and replaced with renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and hydropower.

Global investments are increasing

Though the energy transition is not happening quickly enough, investments in renewable energy such as wind energy are higher than ever before. According to the International Energy Agency, global energy investment is set to exceed USD 3 trillion for the first time in 2024, with USD 2 trillion going to clean energy technologies and infrastructure. In other words, the world now invests almost twice as much in clean energy such as wind energy as it does in fossil fuels. Investment in clean energy has accelerated since 2020, and spending on renewable power, grids and storage is now higher than total spending on oil, gas, and coal.

The IEA also notes how households are becoming a major player in driving investments in renewable energy. The share of total energy investments made or decided by private households (if not necessarily financed by them directly) has doubled from 9% in 2015 to 18% today, thanks to the combined growth in rooftop solar installations, investments in buildings efficiency and electric vehicle purchases.

We are still far from reaching the 1.5-degree target

Despite the current momentum behind renewable energy, today’s investment trends are not aligned with what we need to see if we are to reach the 1.5-degree target. To meet the goals set at COP28 regarding fossil fuel phase out we will have to see a doubling of clean energy investment by 2030 worldwide, and a quadrupling in emerging markets and developing countries outside China. According to the IEA, an extra USD 500 billion per year is required in the IEA’s Net Zero Emissions by 2050 Scenario (NZE Scenario) to fill the gap completely (including spending for grids and battery storage). We also need to see huge effort when it comes to doubling the pace of energy efficiency improvement, key to reducing energy consumption and climate emissions.

Oil producing countries and companies have a huge responsibility when it comes to ensuring the rapid phase out of oil and gas, and transition to renewables. This has to include no new investments in new oil and gas, and a massive scale up of investments in renewable energy transition. Currently oil companies are spending just 2.5% of their capital, collectively, on green power.

Equinor’s lack of investment in renewable energy

Equinor brands itself as a broad energy company, but in reality less than 1% of the energy it produces is renewable and 80% of the company’s investments in 2023 went to fossil fuels. By the end of 2022, Equinor had an installed renewable capacity of 0.6 gigawatts (GW), exactly the same as in 2018. The company’s production of oil and gas has also been roughly consistent since 2018, at around 2 million barrels of oil equivalents per day (mboe/day). This is not a company in transition.

Equinor has set a target to increase its installed renewable capacity from 0.6 GW to 12–16 GW by 2030, enabling an annual electricity production of 35–60 TWh. However, alongside the growth in renewables, Equinor aims to maintain the oil and gas energy production levels in 2030 at approximately the same level as today. If both goals are achieved, renewable energy will account for 7–12 percent of Equinor's total energy production in 2030, according to the Norwegian Climate Foundation.

Norway and Equinor has the financial strength, the skills and the experience to lead the energy transition, but instead chooses to double down on climate-wrecking oil and gas. This must change.

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