Wind power has many useful applications. Great amounts of electricity can be produced by harnessing the power of the wind. Electricity from energy produced by the wind can be used to supply power to homes and businesses. Many families and communities depend on power generated by the wind.
Wind power is captured by wind turbines. Wind can be used to spin turbines that add fuel to batteries. The amount of power that can be utilized from wind is heavily dependent on the speed of the wind. The faster wind is traveling, the more energy that can be yielded from it. Some countries like India, Germany and China are lucky to have rather consistent prevailing winds, which makes the possibility to utilize wind power on a large scale much more feasible than it is for other countries. Countries like India have begun to step up their wind harvesting resources. According to the New York Times, as of September, 2006, "The demand for wind turbines has particularly accelerated in India, where installations rose nearly 48 percent last year, and in China, where they rose 65 percent, although from a lower base.
According to analysts at MyWindPowerSystems.com, the top 10 companies producing wind power in the world as of 2007 were: 1. Vestas, from Denmark, producing 4,500 megawatts. 2. GE Energy, from the United States, producing 3,300 megawatts. 3. Gamesa, from Spain, producing 3,050 megawatts. 4. Enercon, from Germany, producing 2,700 megawatts. 5. Suzlon, from India, producing 2,000 megawatts. 6. Siemens, from Denmark/Germany, producing 1,400 megawatts. 7. Acciona, from Spain, producing 870 megawatts. 8. Goldwind, from China, producing 830 megawatts. 9. Nordex, from Germany, producing 670 megawatts. 10. Sinovel, from China, producing 670 megawatts.
Wind turbines can come in all shapes and sizes. There are commercial-grade turbines that can produce enough power to provide electricity for whole towns. There are also smaller versions of wind turbines that can be used to power single homes and businesses.
The benefits from energy produced by the wind far outweigh the costs to produce wind powered turbines. Also, wind power is considered a clean source of energy. Unlike burning coal for energy, wind power produces no emission and has little effect on the environment. Utilizing wind power also creates jobs. A lot of manpower goes into creating and maintaining wind farms.
Different sized windmills are capable of producing different amounts of energy. A small system with an 8 to 11 foot blade diameter can generate between 30 and 100 kilowatt hours of electricity per month. A system with blades in the 12 to 18 foot diameter can produce about 250 to 800 kw hours of electricity per month. A system with blades over 22 feet can produce upwards of 2,500 kw hours of electricity per month. These systems can cost anywhere from $10,000 to $50,000 to install. A $90,000 system can generate up to 85,000 kw hours per year. Nowadays, million dollar systems are popping up all over the world, the energy generated from these industrial windmills can generate millions of kilowatt hours of electricity per year.