The future of wind energy is bright! As the demand for clean, renewable energy sources continues to grow, so too does the potential for harnessing wind power. Wind turbines are becoming more efficient and cost-effective, while advances in technology allow them to generate electricity at higher levels than ever before. 

Governments around the world are encouraging the development of wind energy, providing financial incentives and supporting research into new technologies. With such strong support and continued innovation in the sector, the future of wind energy looks very promising. The world is rapidly transitioning to renewable sources of energy in order to combat climate change, and it’s clear that wind power will play a major role in this shift.

How does wind energy work? 

Before we look at how we will be harnessing wind energy in the future, let’s first understand how wind energy actually works. 

Placing wind turbines in places where there are often high levels of wind, usually by the coast or off-shore, wind turbines are powered by the wind. Once the propeller of the turbine is spinning, this helps to spin a generator, which in turn generates electricity. 

Although it may seem like a simple process, there are however some challenges that pose risks to relying so heavily on the power of wind to generate electricity. 

These challenges include: 

• The most ideal locations for wind turbine placements are often in remote locations, making them difficult to reach and often hard to maintain
• Some communities and groups of people campaign against the placement of wind turbines due to their design, since they believe this spoils the natural environment 
• In order to boost the use of wind energy, this type of energy must compete with other low-cost types of energy generation 

In order to overcome these challenges, the central and local governments must consider the best ways to introduce wind energy into communities, without disruption to the natural environment and find ways to keep the costs of installation and generation down. Off-shore wind farms are already a great solution for avoiding the criticism of small, rural communities and allows for the installation of larger numbers of wind turbines without having to find the necessary space in-land. 

The potential for off-shore wind energy 

The potential for offshore wind energy is vast and untapped. Offshore wind turbines have the capacity to generate more electricity than their on-shore counterparts due to higher wind speeds, as well as being less visible from land.  This has led to increased investment in this area, with many countries actively exploring the potential of harnessing offshore wind power. The UK specifically has the great advantage of being an island with access to many points in which to establish and develop off-shore wind farms. Currently we already have a total of 44 off-shore wind farms with around 2,500 wind turbines generating over 13% of the country’s total electricity generation.

In the future, with the right investment and legislation in place to support the growth of wind energy, these numbers are certainly expected to increase. 

How businesses can utilise wind energy

Businesses looking to increase their sustainability efforts can consider switching their current electricity supply to that of wind-powered energy. 

AT D-ENERGi we offer our business energy customers electricity supplied from UK based wind farms. Making us one of the only firms in the business electricity sector to offer British businesses the opportunity to access a 100% renewable energy option. To find out more about our D-ENERGi Trading Product, click here, or give our team a call.