I’ve become quite a fan of small-scale wind turbines. They have the potential to help small-land owners produce enough energy for their own needs. There’s also potential for new, smaller enterepeneurs to sell power to the grid. And it’s worth noting that smaller turbines — spread across thousands and thousands of pieces of land —
Category Archives: Posts
Turbines in Mission Impossible
I guess I’ll be one of those folks standing online to get into see “Mission Impossible III.” How can I resist a movie with a helicopter chase through a series of wind turbines?
Small player forced to sell by equipment shortage
Iberdrola SA, the largest wind-energy producer in Spain, has acquired Community Energy, based in Wayne, PA, for $30 million. The idea of a global consolidation among wind-energy firms shouldn’t surprise anyone. Giant multinationals are the norm in the rest of the energy business, and will likely become the norm in wind too. But what may […]
Small turbines attract big media
I guess I’m not the only reporter to think there’s great potential in the smaller turbines being sold by Southwest Windpower. I’d mentioned the product a few weeks ago when I saw a reference in Fortune Small Business magazine. Now Red Herring has a more detailed piece that focuses on the low-cost and ease-of-use advantages […]
Not in your backyard either
Many a wind-energy entrepreneur has found himself facing off against activists that are offended by the sight of turbines. And it’s easy to dismiss such folks — despite any legitimate arguments they might make — as elitist snobs afraid of losing the views from their mansions. But a columnist for the Washington Post suggests that […]
Do it yourself turbines
If I didn’t think my Brooklyn neighbors would get upset (and if I were a little more “handy”), I’d try building one of these myself. If you’ve got a little bit of land, and some non-New York neighbors, you may want to take a look at this or this.
Follow the smart money
John Doerr is a very smart guy. And if you’d had the good sense and good luck to invest in his venture-capital firm, Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers, you’d be feeling pretty smart too. Doerr has made a fortune by moving early into companies such as Sun Microsystems, Netscape and Google. So where is Doerr […]
Nantucket to vote on Cape Wind
Tuesday is Election Day on Nantucket, and residents will get their chance to vote on the Cape Wind project. The Boston Globe reports that campaigning has intensified in recent days, and that wind farm proponents think they have a better chance than widely believed.
Federal law threatens Cape Wind
The federal government is sticking its nose someplace it doesn’t likely belong — the controversy over an offshore wind farm in Massachusetts. According to this editorial in the Boston Globe, a clause in a spending bill for the U.S. Coast Guard would give Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney veto power over the Cape Wind project. It’s […]
Parrots block wind farm in Australia
Live by the environmental sword, die by the environmental sword. That may be the lesson from today’s news that Australia’s federal government has overruled a state decision to erect a 52-turbine wind farm in Victoria’s South Gippsland. Federal officials and activists are concerned that the farm would threaten the survival of the orange bellied parrot. […]