Wind power in New Zealand

As of early 2008, wind power in New Zealand has an installed capacity of 321 MW, nearly double the 2006 capacity. Wind power now provides enough electricity to meet the needs of 145,000 New Zealand households,cite web
last =
first =
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Current wind farms, projects under construction, projects for which resource consents have been applied and potential future developments
work =
publisher = New Zealand Wind Energy Association
date =
url = http://www.windenergy.org.nz/FAQ/proj_dom.htm
format =
doi =
accessdate = 2008-09-11] and supplies approximately 2.5% of the country's electricity demand.cite web
last =
first =
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Wind energy basics
work =
publisher = New Zealand Wind Energy Association
date = April 2008
url = http://www.windenergy.org.nz/documents/2008/Wind-energy-basics.pdf
format =
doi =
accessdate = 2008-04-13 ] A further 172.6 MW of wind farms is under construction, with approval being sought for another 2,054 MW.

Wind resources

New Zealand has outstanding wind resources, due to its position astride the Roaring Forties, resulting in nearly continuous strong westerly winds over many locations, unimpeded by other nearby landmasses at similar latitude.cite web
last =
first =
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = New Zealand wind resource
work =
publisher = New Zealand Wind Energy Association
date =
url = http://www.windenergy.org.nz/FAQ/resource.htm
format =
doi =
accessdate = 2008-03-08 ] One study found that using 1% of total available land for wind farms would produce approximately 100,000 gigawatt hours (GWh) per year.cite web
last =
first =
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = New Zealand's Wind Resource
work =
publisher = New Zealand Wind Energy Association
date =
url = http://www.windenergy.org.nz/FAQ/wind_resrc.htm
format =
doi =
accessdate = 2008-03-08 ] This is roughly three times the annual electricity consumption of New Zealand in 2001. Nearly continuous however does not mean continuous: a high-pressure weather system can cover the entire country, meaning no significant winds anywhere.

Acceptance

Wind farms and turbines generate a wide range of opinions from outright opposition to widespread acceptance. Opposition is due to noise, aesthetics and ecological factors.

Wind farms

Location map+|New Zealand transparent|caption=Wind farms in New Zealand|float=right|width=300|places= Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-36.2|long=166.9|label=Proposed Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|mark=Red_pog.svg|lat=-37|long=166.9|label=Under construction Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|mark=Blue_pog.svg|lat=-37.8|long=166.9|label=Operating Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Blue_pog.svg|lat=-41.3616|long=175.4839|label=Hau Nui Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Blue_pog.svg|lat=-40.3462|long=175.7799|label=Tararua Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Blue_pog.svg|lat=-40.2961|long=175.8083|label=Te Apiti Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Blue_pog.svg|lat=-40.3884|long=175.7241|label=Te Rere Hau Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Blue_pog.svg|lat=-45.7526|long=168.2717|label=White Hill Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Red_pog.svg|lat=-41.2764|long=174.6602|label=West Wind Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-37.5678|long=174.8050|label=Hauauru ma raki Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-39.1838|long=176.6931|label=Hawke's Bay Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-46.2415|long=169.0558|label=Kaiwera Downs Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-41.3267|long=174.7179|label=Long Gully Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-45.7605|long=169.9049|label=Mahinerangi Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-41.2123|long=174.7390|label=Mill Creek Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-43.0749|long=172.8376|label=Mount Cass Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-45.5110|long=169.8841|label=Project Hayes Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-37.8783|long=174.9632|label=Te Uku Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-40.4410|long=175.6715|label=Turitea Wind Farm Location map~|New Zealand transparent|marksize=8|label_size=0|mark=Green_pog.svg|lat=-40.3623|long=176.1733|label=Waitahora Wind Farm

Wind turbines

Wind turbines have been installed at Southbridge in Canterbury, [http://www.windenergy.org.nz/photos/windfarms/southbridge.htm New Zealand Wind Energy Association - Southbridge Wind Turbine] Gebbies Pass near Christchurch and at Brooklyn in Wellington.

ee also

*Electrical energy in New Zealand
*List of power stations in New Zealand
*Windflow Technology, a wind turbine manufacturer based in New Zealand

References

Further reading

*cite book|last=Energy Link and MWH NZ|title=Wind Energy Integration in New Zealand|location=New Zealand|date=May 2005|url=http://www.eeca.govt.nz/eeca-library/renewable-energy/wind/report/wind-integration-in-nz-report-05.pdf|accessdate=2008-09-14

External links

* [http://www.windenergy.org.nz New Zealand Wind Energy Association]
*cite web|url=http://www.windenergy.org.nz/documents/2007/070913-NZWEA-Tararua-3-carbon-neutral-in-months.pdf|title=Carbon neutral wind energy can close off nuclear option|date=2007-09-13|publisher=New Zealand Wind Energy Association|accessdate=2008-09-13