U.S. wind power capacity increased by 46% in 2007, with $9 billion invested in U.S. wind plants, according to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in the 2007 edition of its "Annual Report on U.S. Wind Power Installation, Cost, and Performance Trends." This increase makes the United States the fastest-growing wind power market in the world for the third straight year. The report also states that wind projects accounted for 35% of all new U.S. electric generating capacity in 2007, and transmission facilities capable of generating a total of more than 200GW of wind power are in the early stages of development throughout the nation. By the end of 2007, 1.2% of the nation’s electricity supply could be met with wind capacity.
First issued last year, the report analyzes developments in the wind market, including trends in wind installations, turbine size, turbine prices, installed project costs, project performance, wind power prices, and cost comparisons between wind power and conventional generation. The full report may be downloaded from the DOE Web site.