Shattering all previous records, the U. S. wind industry installed 5, 244 megawatts of wind energy in 2007, expanding the nation’s total wind power generating capacity by 45% in a single year. This injects 9 billion dollars into the economy, according to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). These wind projects account for about 30% of the entire new-power-producing capacity added nationally in 2007 and will power the equivalent of 1.5 million American households.

The United States now has 16,818 megawatts of installed wind energy, spanning 34 states. AWEA expects 2008 could equal 2007 in new wind capacity installed. However, the pace of growth in 2008 is expected to largely depend, not on turbine availability, but on the timing and duration of an extension of the federal production tax credit.

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