The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Wind Program is committed to developing and deploying a portfolio of innovative technologies for clean, domestic power generation to support an ever-growing industry. The Wind Program, in close cooperation with the wind industry, released a new report that looks at the future of wind power through 2050 and the economic benefits that come with a robust wind industry. The report, Wind Vision: A New Era for Wind Power in the United States, confirms that with technological advancements driving projected cost reductions, in combination with continued siting and transmission development, wind power can be economically deployed to provide renewable power in all 50 states.
What We Do
The Program's activities are leading the nation's efforts to accelerate the deployment of wind power technologies through improved performance, lower costs, and reduced market barriers. The Program works with national laboratories, industry, universities, and other federal agencies to conduct research and development activities through competitively selected, directly funded, and cost-shared projects. Our efforts target both land-based and offshore wind power to fully support the clean energy economy.
Why It Matters
Greater use of the nation's abundant wind resources for electric power generation will help the nation reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and other air pollutants, diversify its energy supply, provide cost‐competitive electricity to key regions across the country, and reduce water usage for power generation. In addition, wind energy deployment will help stimulate the revitalization of key sectors of the economy by investing in infrastructure and creating long-term, sustainable skilled jobs.
Reducing the Cost of Renewable Energy
The Wind Program is committed to helping the nation secure cost-competitive sources of renewable energy through the development and deployment of innovative wind power technologies. By investing in improvements to wind plant design, technology development, and operation as well as developing tools to identify the highest quality wind resources, the Wind Program serves as a leader in making wind energy technologies more competitive with traditional sources of energy and a larger part of our nation's renewable energy portfolio.
Securing Clean, Domestic Energy
The Wind Program is contributing to the nation's role as a leader in renewable energy technology development by promoting domestic manufacturing of wind power technologies. Wind energy is a clean, domestic power source that requires little to no water and creates no air pollution when compared to more traditional energy sources. The Program works to ensure that wind energy technologies are environmentally responsible by analyzing the environmental impacts of wind energy, observing species' interactions with wind turbines, and researching opportunities to mitigate or eliminate any impacts where they may exist.
Enabling the Renewable Energy Market
By working with industry, federal and international partners, and national laboratories, the Wind Program seeks to understand and address market barriers such as environmental impacts, project siting and permitting processes, and wind's potential effects on our nation's air space and waterways. These efforts will help wind power continue on its trajectory to being a competitive, cost-effective part of our nation's renewable energy portfolio.
Harnessing Energy Where our Nation Needs it Most
Wind energy presents a unique opportunity to harness energy in areas where our country's populations need it most. This includes offshore wind's potential to provide power to population centers near coastlines, and land-based wind's ability to deliver electricity to rural communities with few other local sources of power. By working to deploy wind power in new areas on land and at sea and ensuring the stable, secure integration of this power to our nation's electrical grid, the Wind Program contributes to the delivery of clean, renewable energy throughout the nation.
National Laboratories
The Wind Program funds research and development activities at the following national laboratories:
