CASE: DENMARK – A PIONEER IN WIND ENERGy 21 DENMARK – A PIONEER IN WIND ENERGY The use of wind as a source of energy in Denmark dates back hundreds of years but the oil crisis of the 1970s lead to a renewed focus on harnessing the natural forces and the entrepreneurial ingenuity combined with a R&D focus has given Denmark a pioneering role in wind Wind mills and post mills were initially used in the agricultural sector for grinding grains and pumping water but in 1891, the Danish physicist Poul la Cour started experimenting with wind power as a source of electricity. Supported by funds from the Danish state, he created a turbine, which supplied the school he was working at with direct current and he even experimented with storing wind energy. While ingenious, the wind turbine could not compete with the growing number of coal-fired power plants and despite a brief blossoming during the world wars, the development of the technology almost came to a standstill. A renewed focus on wind Highly dependent on imported energy, the oil crises of the early 1970s lead to increasing electricity costs in Denmark. As a result, it became an objective to become independent of imported oil and in the mid-1970s, the Danish state started funding a development program for wind energy. This was followed by a test base for smaller turbines in the late 1970s, as industrious self-builders, grassroots and entrepreneurs had started constructing turbines for their own use. The first commercial turbines with an output of 22 kW were constructed by machinery manufacturers around 1979. As a result, the Danish wind energy story has been one of both a bottom-up and a top-down approach – and the strategy has paid off. Harnessing the wind offshore In a search for more efficiency and a lower cost of energy, the size of the turbines has grown steadily over the years and while most turbines in the early 1990s had sizes of up to 225 kW, the next generation of wind turbines now reaches 8 MW. The larger turbines makes it economically feasible to harness wind offshore, where the wind speeds makes up for the larger expenses. In 1991, the world’s first offshore wind farm was erected in Denmark, when eleven 450 kW turbines were commissioned. Many more offshore wind farms has seen the light of day since 1991 and the next Danish offshore wind farms, Horns Rev 3 and Kriegers Flak, will reach sizes of 400-600 MW. The future of wind energy Today the Danish wind industry, employing more than 28,000, holds a global market share of more than 20% of all newly installed capacity and a study by the Danish Energy Agency has concluded that onshore wind energy has become the cheapest energy source for new electricity generation in Denmark, undercutting coal and natural gas. However, the future calls for even more efficient turbines, overall cost reductions and a continued focus on the cooperation and strong partnerships between the industry, the private sector and the research institutions which has previously characterised the Danish wind energy story. The development in Danish wind energy technology is remarkable. The first commercial turbines had an output of 22 kW and the blades in the photo, dated 1980, are 7.5 meters long and produced for 55 kW turbines. The blades of the newest offshore turbines are more than 80 meters long. Photo: Erik Grove-Nielsen.
Share
Print
Download PDF file
Archive
Facebook
Linkedin
Twitter