• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

My TechDecisions

  • COVID-19 Update
  • Best of Tech Decisions
  • Topics
    • Video
    • Audio
    • Mobility
    • Unified Communications
    • IT Infrastructure
    • Network Security
    • Physical Security
    • Facility
    • Compliance
  • RFP Resources
  • Downloads
  • Podcasts
  • Subscribe
  • Project of the Week
  • Latest News
  • About Us
    SEARCH
Facility, News

Wind Power Prices Fall Below Natural Gas – Opportunity for Organizations?

The US Department of Energy released a report showing that wind farms are cheaper to build and operate than natural gas plants.

August 27, 2019 Jonathan Blackwood Leave a Comment

When wind farms become cheaper to own and operate than natural gas plants, it should excite technology managers.

The US Department of Energy released a report that looks back on wind power in the US in 2018, and analysis shows that the cost of owning and operating a wind farm has fallen below the cost of buying fuel for an equivalent natural gas plant.

One of the main reasons for these findings is the technology behind wind turbines. In 2008 there were no turbines in the US with 100m rotors, whereas 99 percent of rotors in 2018 were over 100m. The turbine’s generator grew at the same rate, up 5 percent even from 2017 to 2018.

While the prices for wind power were rising up through 2009, there have declined ever since. According to Ars Technica:

The report uses an estimate of future natural gas prices that show an extremely gradual rise of about $10/MW-hr out to 2050. But natural gas—on its own, without considering the cost of a plant to burn it for electricity—is already over $20/MW-hr. That means wind sited in the center of the US is already cheaper than fueling a natural gas plant, and wind sited elsewhere is roughly equal.

What’s all of this mean for technology managers? Simply put, it’s time to consider a strategy of moving to alternative energy sources. While it’s a big change, it can also have big benefits for the business.

The ROI alone should be a good enough reason. It’s clear that the trends show natural gas is rising in cost while wind power is falling. Making the switch now, with tax credits in place for renewable energy, could set the organization up to save thousands over the coming years. There is a ways to go, of course, but switching some operations over will give the organization the infrastructure and experience to continue moving to renewable energy sources down the line.

There’s also the PR impact – organizations that commit to going green often see great receptions from customers and potential customers. In a world where eco-friendliness is akin to benevolence, switching to operations that rely on wind power could provide a huge boost to the company’s reputation. Couple that with the fact that you might be saving money overall and it’s a win-win.

Reports like this are something technology managers should keep an eye on. The renewable energy industry is only growing, and you don’t want to be the organization left behind.

Jonathan Blackwood
Jonathan Blackwood

Jonathan Blackwood is the Editor-in-Chief of TechDecisions. Jonathan joined TechDecisions in 2014 and writes about technologies that help to innovate and improve practices for companies of all sizes, K-12 and higher education, government, healthcare, hospitality, retail and large venue spaces. He is especially interested in the future of work and education and the Internet of Things. Follow him @BlackwoodTweets.

Tagged With: Energy Management, Green Technology

Related Content:

  • Google BeyondCorp Enterprise Google Releases Chrome Privacy, Security Fixes
  • Chris Krebs CISA fired, CISA Ransomware Campaign U.S. Agencies: Russian SolarWinds Hackers Leveraging Five Older…
  • Remote Work Productivity, tips for 2021, carbon emissions Will Continued Adoption of Remote Work Technologies Cut…
  • FBI Microsoft Exchange Server FBI Removes ‘Hundreds’ Of Web Shells From Compromised…

Free downloadable guide you may like:

  • 9 Technology Products to Help Combat COVID-19 Spread in the Workplace

    As the Coronavirus continues on and leads us further into uncertainty, the question remains, “when do we return to the office?” For some the answer is now and for others, it’s much, much later. For most, they seem to fall somewhere in the middle, they are looking for a combination of remote and on-premises work. […]

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Get the FREE Tech Decisions eNewsletter

Sign up Today!

Latest Downloads

Tackling the Virtual Culture Dilemma

COVID-19 has turned much of our lives upside down. At over one year into the pandemic, many of us are still working from home, which has been the b...

These Are THE Key Issues For CIOs in 2021

In this new research survey from The Hackett Group, it was found that IT priorities are geared up for an aggressive and accelerated transformation ...

These Are The 2021 Trends in Control Rooms And Operation Centers

Join Shelley Johnson, Principal Engineer at The MITRE Corporation, Shane Vega, National Business Development Manager at AVI-SPL, and Dan Griffin, V...

View All Downloads

Would you like your latest project featured on TechDecisions as Project of the Week?

Apply Today!
Sharp Microsoft Collaboration HQ Logo

Learn More About the
Windows Collaboration Display

More from Our Sister Publications

Get the latest news about AV integrators and Security installers from our sister publications:

Commercial IntegratorSecurity Sales

Footer

TechDecisions

  • Home
  • Welcome to TechDecisions
  • Subscribe to the Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • Media Solutions & Advertising
  • Comment Guidelines
  • RSS Feeds
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linkedin

Free Technology Guides

FREE Downloadable resources from TechDecisions provide timely insight into the issues that IT, A/V, and Security end-users, managers, and decision makers are facing in commercial, corporate, education, institutional, and other vertical markets

View all Guides
TD Project of the Week

Get your latest project featured on TechDecisions Project of the Week. Submit your work once and it will be eligible for all upcoming weeks.

Enter Today!

© 2021 Emerald X, LLC. All rights reserved.