On the Materials Intensity of Wind Power
No, Net Zero is not happening
POSTED ON 12 DEC 22
BY JITIN ENERGY, NET ZERO, UNCATEGORIZED, WIND POWER
It has often been remarked that in our [insert pejorative adjective here] pursuit of Net Zero, we are attempting to replace an energy system that is fossil-fuel intensive with one that is material intensive. A recent IEA report has this as one of its subheadings:
The shift from a fuel-intensive to a material-intensive energy system
Wherein it notes:
A typical electric car requires six times the mineral inputs of a conventional car and an onshore wind plant requires nine times more mineral resources than a gas-fired plant of the same capacity.
IEA, op. cit.
Their boss may not know much about energy, but perhaps some of his minions actually have studied the matter. Because the energy density of wind is so low, a lot of equipment is required to extract useful amounts of power. That equipment has a large mass and covers a large area; it has to be widely spaced so that wake effects and blocking do not make matters even worse. So much so obvious, although apparently not to the important people, those whose responsibility it is to decide what is a good energy system and what is not.
I have been looking into just how materials intensive wind power is for some time. Estimates vary, of course. The following table shows estimates of metals usage per MW, made by the World Bank:
https://cliscep.com/2022/12/12/on-the-materials-intensity-of-wind-power/
