January 10, 08
Record Year for US Wind Industry With 3,000 MW Installed

2007 will go down as another record year for the wind energy industry, according to projections from the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). The AWEA estimates the industry will install a record 3,000 MW of new wind power capacity in 2007 -- and for the first time produce enough total energy to supply more than 3 million American homes.

2007 was also a year of other important wind energy milestones. Texas surpassed California as the nation's largest generator of wind power and conventional oil and gas companies and Shell expanded into renewable wind energy.

The US wind power generation business continued to be led by integrated utilities in 2007. According to statistics published by the AWEA, Florida Power and Light was the nation's leading wind power developer in 2007 and Xcel Energy , the largest purchaser of wind generated power.