The Wind Power Story: A Century of Innovation that Reshaped the Global Energy Landscape

Helps readers understand and appreciate what the history of wind power can teach us about technology innovation and provides the implications for both wind power today and its future

This book takes readers on a journey through the history of wind power in order to show how the technology evolved over the course of the twentieth century and where it may be headed in the twenty-first century. It introduces and examines broad themes such as government funding of wind power, the role of fossil fuels in wind power development, and the importance of entrepreneurs in wind power development. It also discusses the lessons learned from wind power technology innovation and makes them relevant to the understanding of wind power today and in the future.

Spanning the entire history of wind power (1888-2018), The Wind Power Story: A Century of Innovation that Reshaped the Global Energy Landscape provides balanced coverage of each decade as well as the important wind power technology innovations that occurred during that time. Compelling from the first page to the last, it offers chapters covering the pioneers of wind power; the age of small wind; wind power in the wake of war; wind power’s use across Europe; government-funded research programs; how Denmark reinvented wind power in the 1970s; the California Wind Rush of the 1980s; wind power’s rise in Spain; America’s wind power starting in the 1990s; India’s wind power path; the wind power surge in China; the globalization of wind power; and much more. 

In addition, this text: 

• Spans the entire global history of wind power, while weaving together both the historical context and the technical details of wind power innovation
• Provides historical context for wind power developments and explains the evolution of wind turbine technology in an easy-to-understand manner
• Discusses the policy, technology, and market evolution of wind power in commonly understood language
• Offers a review of the surrounding power technology, policy, and market environment throughout the history of wind power

A book that both specialists and non-specialists can read in order to understand and appreciate the past, present, and future of wind power technology, The Wind Power Story: A Century of Innovation that Reshaped the Global Energy Landscape will be of great interest to any engineer and any interested readers looking to understand wind power technologies, markets, and policies in one book.

BRANDON N. OWENS is an energy economist and author with expertise in clean energy, corporate strategy, digital technologies, and data and analytics. A 25-year energy industry veteran, his research has been published in leading energy industry journals and periodicals. Mr. Owens has provided energy technology advice to governments, research organizations, energy consultancies, and global corporations. He is currently the Director of Global Market Development for GE Power Digital. Prior to joining GE in 2007, Mr. Owens was the Director of Global Power Research at Cambridge Energy Research Associates. Earlier in his career, he served as an analyst for the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Mr. Owens holds an MS degree in Mineral Economics from the Colorado School of Mines and a BA degree in Mathematics from the University of Colorado.