Yes, this latest off-shore wind-farm will cover the electric consumption of 425.000 households.-
To put that into perspective: There are some 2.6 million households in DK.
The aim is to get DK self-reliant on fossil-free (and nuclear-free) energy by 2050 and we are getting very close to that target.
At present at least half of all DK households are covered by wind-energy.
Off-shore wind-farms ensure jobs as well, because the off-shore industry servicing the oil-rigs are now turning to construction and maintenance of wind-mills.
The advantages of off-shore wind-farms is that the mills can be almost as large as desired, they don't disturb the scenery when out of sight and it's always windy.
The problem is of course how to efficiently store the energy created by mills, but it is only a matter of time before that is solved, and as DK belongs to the European energy grid, surplus energy is immediately sold and send on through the grid. So there is at present really not that much need to store energy produced at this level.
Nuclear energy is at present the cheapest and most reliable energy, but there are a few - ahem - downsides to that...
So electricity from wind is more expensive, but the prices are very difficult to gauge, as the energy sector is heavily subsidized in various ways in different countries. So on the face of it electricity in DK is relatively pricey compared to other countries. The indirect purpose being to induce people to use less energy and switch to energy saving devices when at all possible. With considerable success I might add, because the money saved is money in the bank for the consumer.
The windmills are good for the export too. As there is a changing awareness among the consumers worldwide about the environment, those countries that went first with renewable energy have the edge on the export-market. Those countries who drag their feet are in for a big bill later on!
How about the birds, I hear you say.
Well, provided you don't place the wind-farms in the direct routes of migrating birds the problem isn't that big. The problem is worst at night, when the birds can't see the wings. But studies indicate that after a while the birds learn to fly around the wind-farms.
Anyway, migrating patterns can be changed as has been observed here in DK.
We have bridges absolutely everywhere in this country, with even more being planned. And migrating birds think bridges are the best thing since the hotdog was invented!
As is migrating birds already follow rivers and coastlines - as well as railroads and highways... Bridges spanning stretches of waters are therefore quite useful from a bird-perspective, thank you very much. There is after all a reason why ornithologists have set up bases near the largest bridges here in DK.
Another surprising study has shown that the life in the ocean benefit from wind-farms. The wind-thingies have to stand on something out there in the ocean of course. A foundation. And that foundation is quite a nice place to live if you are an oyster. And where there are oysters, there are fish, and since the area around off-shore wind-farms are usually off-limits to trawlers, quite a few fish!
So from an overall perspective off-shore wind-farms work.
Provided they are out of sight of the coast, they don't bother anyone.
That is great to hear
