Below are selected story summaries of the top stories in the current issue of Windpower Monthly. For a PDF of this month's full contents click here. Current stories are print exclusive, but you can get the full picture, including exclusive access to our extensive online article database by subscribing now.

Selected news story summaries

Out of 69 articles in the print magazine this month, we have written summaries of six top stories for the benefit of visitors to our web site.

Warnings of risings costs to consumers if target not met forces UK regulator into renewables u-turn

Failing to meet the UK's renewable energy targets could mean that consumers face a 60% rise in electricity prices over the next ten years, warns UK energy regulator Ofgem. Meeting the targets - including for renewables to supply 30% of the country's electricity - will result in a more modest 14% increase in household electricity bills by 2020, it says. Read the November issue of Windpower Monthly to find out about the four different energy scenario's in Ofgem's.
This summary: 77 words. Full stories: 493 words
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Changes to French law could jeopardise wind with environmental hazard label

A draft law currently going through the French parliament could "put the wind power sector in peril" if it is adopted, warns Didier Lenoir, president of French renewables network Comité de Liaison des Energies Renouvelables. The most troubling aspect for the industry is the Senate's confirmation that wind turbines will be subject to regulations covering "industries classified for the protection of the environment" (ICPE). For more details, pick up the latest Windpower Monthly.
This summary: 73 words. Full story: 975 words
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Concern over public perception as majority of US Treasury grants go to foreign firms

In just one month, the US Treasury Department has paid out over $1 billion for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects, with foreign wind power firms taking the largest slice of the cash. The distribution of money to overseas companies is raising hushed concerns in US wind circles that the US public may question the use of taxpayer dollars for foreign firms even if a closer analysis shows that the majority of the investment and benefits stays in the US. Windpower Monthly reports on the ins and outs of the US funding model in its November issue.
This summary: 97 words. Full story: 675 words
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Ruling on GE patent revisited as US wind turbine technology row takes a new twist

Victory could be short-lived for General Electric (GE), which won the first round of its patent dispute with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) over wind turbine technology in the United States. The full US International Trade Commission (ITC) has now decided to review an ITC judge's preliminary decision, issued in August. If it overturns the preliminary decision, imports of MHI's 2.4 MW turbine to the US would no longer be illegal. The turbine is a competitor to GE's 2.5 MW model, to be introduced to the American market in 2010. Read about the latest instalment of this ongoing legal battle in the current issue of Windpower Monthly.
This summary: 106 words. Full story: 914 words
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Wind makes case in climate crunch and warns that financial crisis must not divert focus

With the world's leaders set to descend on Copenhagen next month to secure a new global climate change agreement, warnings that nothing less than an energy revolution is needed have been rife. Wind has a pivotal role to play in that revolution -- a fact now widely acknowledged -- even if some still seem to vastly underestimate its potential. But strong market mechanisms and policy certainty is the key to unlocking that potential. For analysis of the build-up to the summit, the key players and how wind can contribute to the global push to slash emissions, turn to the November issue of Windpower Monthly.
This summary: 103 words. Full story: 1410 words
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Leadership from Obama needed to bring unity as climate deal pressure mounts

The clock is ticking. At the time of writing, there are only 54 days left until the opening of the eagerly anticipated climate change summit in Copenhagen, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change's COP 15. Only five of those 54 days will be spent in formal negotiations, from November 2-6, in Barcelona. On the basis of the current state of play, the differences separating the parties involved seem too great to be bridged in that time, and Copenhagen seems likely to disappoint. But a lot can happen in that time to salvage something useful for the climate and the renewable energy industry in general, and wind power specifically. Read Global Wind Energy Council secretary general Steve Sawyer's comment on the post-2012 climate change summit in the latest Windpower Monthly magazine.
This summary: 132 words. Full stories: 1823 words
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Comment

Think international

Go green, go local. That's a message used regularly by lobby groups, political parties and businesses. But are the two goals - being environmentally friendly and being locally based or sourced - inevitably intertwined? Not always. In some cases, in fact, forcing the clean and green to be local can be counterproductive. Wind energy is one such area. In the US, President Barack Obama's cash grants for renewables development have helped fund new clean energy deployment, the majority of which is wind. Yet there is disquiet.

This summary: 84 words. Full comment column: 905 words
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