The wind industry has a very well-funded propaganda machine and powerful lobbyists. This article, using previously unpublished data, is an attempt to redress the balance, to cut through the fog of misrepresentation, and establish one simple fact which the wind industry does not like the public or the Government to understand:

Virtually all the energy contribution from onshore wind turbines will have to be backed-up.
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Although the BWEA and others attempt to confuse the issue and everybody, by talking about balancing requirement, capacity credits and percentages of capacity and percentages of output, the question that arises is, very simply - what percentage of installed wind capacity can be statistically relied upon to meet peak demand? It is important to be sure of this, to determine what back-up capacity is required.
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It is hoped that this article will do something to disperse the smokescreen put up by the BWEA and others.

One should bear in mind that individuals in the wind development companies and investors are making a considerable amount of money from over-subsidised onshore turbines.

German and UK wind power output for February 2008
Feb 08 Click to enlarge

They bear none of the incremental costs required to support an intermittent and, at times, virtually non-existent energy source.

This cost is borne by the consumers, as is the cost of the subsidy payments that make the investment returns for turbines so high.

It is little less than Government sponsored robbery of the poor for the benefit of the rich.

This article is a classic example of what tbg rails so often about,  frame-stealing and twisting.  Twisting E.ons stats is unconscionable; would that BWEA had a decent media-trained response team.

Skennah Kowa