EIR Looks at the Power of Onshore Wind Repowering

In this environment of rising costs, a wind repower has significant upside over a new build and developers are starting to take notice.

That’s what Enverus Intelligence Research (EIR) Vice President Scott Wilmot said in a statement sent to Rigzone recently, which highlighted that EIR had released a report looking at how onshore wind capacity additions in the U.S. have changed over time and why repowering older projects is gaining momentum.

“More developers are opting to repower instead of building new wind plants in an effort to reduce capital expenditure and operations and maintenance costs, and boost power production,” Wilmot said in the statement.

“Repowering can often be done under existing premium-priced power purchase agreements (PPAs) that have remaining term. Given the status of the aging wind fleet and the turbine efficiency gains that have been achieved, we expect repowering momentum to continue in the U.S. going forward,” he added.

In the statement, the EIR Vice President noted that, depending on PPA price, repower economics can be preferable to a new build if a five percent capacity factor gain can be realized.

“This is a low benchmark to clear given the turbine efficiency gains and degradation we have observed,” Wilmot said in the statement.

“Projects older than 12 years (pre-2012 vintage) can realize capacity factor gains of 10 percent to 20 percent through a repower - this makes repowering an easy economic decision,” he added.

One of the key takeaways from EIR’s report was that wind capacity currently being repowered totals nearly seven gigawatts, which equals the amount of new build under construction, the statement outlined.

Another key takeaway from the report was that EIR identified 261 potential targets in its database, representing almost 21,000 megawatts, the statement highlighted.

According to the Energy Institute’s latest statistical review of world energy, which was released last year, as of the end of 2022, the U.S. had 140,862 terawatt hours of installed onshore and offshore wind turbine capacity. That figure represented a 5.9 percent year on year increase and 15.7 percent of the total share of installed onshore and offshore wind turbine capacity as of the end of 2022, the review outlined.

China was the only nation included in the review with more installed onshore and offshore wind turbine capacity than the U.S. as of the end of 2022, with 365,965 terawatt hours, the review showed. That figure represented an 11.2 percent year on year increase and 40.7 percent of the total share of installed onshore and offshore wind turbine capacity as of the end of 2022, according to the review.

Germany ranked third in terms of installed onshore and offshore wind turbine capacity as of the end of 2022, with 66,315 terawatt hours, the review highlighted. That figure marked a 3.9 percent year on year increase and 7.4 percent of the total share of installed onshore and offshore wind turbine capacity as of the end of 2022, the review revealed.

From 2012 to 2022, China’s installed onshore and offshore wind turbine capacity has increased by an average of 19.5 percent year on year, while the U.S. has seen an average annual growth rate of 9.0 percent, and Germany has seen an average annual growth rate of 7.9 percent, according to the review.

A White House fact sheet posted on the White House website in March 2023 highlighted that, in March 2021, U.S. President Joe Biden set a goal of deploying 30 GW of offshore wind electricity generation by 2030. The fact sheet noted that this would be enough to power more than 10 million American homes with clean energy, while creating good-paying jobs in the United States across manufacturing, shipbuilding, port operations, construction, and other sectors. The fact sheet also outlined that the U.S. is on a path to 110 GW by 2050. 

To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com