With the exception of large-scale hydro and landfill gas (which have less potential for further expansion in the UK), onshore wind is the most cost-effective and developed of all the renewable electricity technologies.
In a time when fossil fuel is becoming scarcer and will inevitably increase in cost, it is inconceivable we should not utilise wind energy as it is cheap and proven compared to most other current renewable technologies. It has close to zero marginal cost.
The cost of onshore wind farms depends on a combination of factors including access, infrastructure and ground conditions. The installed cost can be in the region of £1 million to £1.25 million per megawatt.
Incentives
The Renewables Obligation (RO) is currently the Government’s main financial incentive for large-scale renewable electricity, including wind power. This requires supply companies to source a specified and annually increasing proportion of their electricity sales from eligible sources of renewable energy – or pay a penalty. The RO is a generation-based subsidy meaning support is granted for each MWh of electricity actually generated. A wind farm will, therefore, only receive support when it generates. Lower capacity windfarms will generate less renewable electricity and therefore receive a lower RO subsidy.