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According to the Energy Information Administration, last year
saw record highs in installed wind capacity and subsidies, but
production is falling in Illinois and around the country.
Paige Lambermont with the Competitive Enterprise Institute said
this was in part due to slower wind speeds last year, an obvious
flaw of wind power.
“There were lower winds last year in some places, that was part
of it, and I also think the wind is not always blowing when the
power grid needs it,” said Lambermont.
The highest installed wind capacity on record was in 2023, with
nearly 150 gigawatts of installed wind capacity in the U.S.
Illinois has nearly 3,000 wind turbines in operation, which is
the sixth highest total in the nation.
The Illinois Power Agency cited supply chain and ongoing
interconnection delays as creating significant challenges to
meeting the state’s clean energy goals. An energy insider says
grid connection has become a leading barrier to new power plants
coming online and new renewables being deployed.
There is also local opposition to wind projects as many counties
around the country have blocked wind farm proposals. In
Illinois, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said he would allow for local
control, then did an about face and prohibited counties from
preventing wind projects.
Lawmakers continue to throw money at the industry, as the
federal government spent nearly $19 billion on subsidies for
wind power from 2016 to 2022.
Lambermont said renewables received 46% of overall power
subsidies, despite constituting a small portion of overall power
generation, a ratio that should be corrected.
“Actually, you would see the technologies that do provide better
power and are far more reliable than wind in a market that was
less subsidized,” said Lambermont.
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