§ Mr. Ben ChapmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimates have been made of the costs of steel production in the construction of wind farms. [186600]
§ Mr. TimmsA typical 2 MW wind turbine weighs around 260 tonnes and approximately 95 per cent. of that by weight is steel. Installed costs of onshore wind turbines are around £700,000 per MW, of which the turbines can account for around 75 per cent., although this will depend on factors such as the cost of the foundations and grid connection etc. One a per tonne basis, steel costs even at current market prices would account for less than 10 per cent. of the cost of the turbine.
However, the cost of the steel itself is not necessarily the driving cost fact in all components of the turbine. For example, the tower section of the turbine is a relatively simple structure and in this case the amount of steel used will be the primary cost factor. However, other sections such as the nacelle, which contain complex components such as the turbine generator etc, might account for 25–40 per cent. of weight and 25 per cent. of the cost of the turbine. Although steel is still the primary component by weight, other raw materials and the processes involved in making these complex components account for a more significant proportion to total costs.
1539W
§ Nick HarveyTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the 50 MW threshold, above which she determines planning applications for wind farms, is based on the wind farm's theoretical maximum output, or its actual projected output. [187039]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienWhen looking at the capacity of a power station for the purposes of applications made under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989, it is the rated capacity which counts. That is the capacity which can be generated by the station and fed through the alternators without causing damage to the alternators.
§ Nick HarveyTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what constitutes a single wind farm for the purposes of planning applications; and whether there is a maximum distance between two clusters of turbines, beyond which they would be regarded as two wind farms. [187040]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienThe Department is of the view that a wind farm could be considered as one where it used the same common services such as transmission cables, electricity sub-station and control room. If separate services were to be used then it would be two stand alone proposals and fall to be determined as two separate applications. While there is no maximum distance between each turbine the Department would expect the turbines to be spaced in such a manner that the distance between each turbine is the optimum for generation and satisfying environmental concerns.
§ Mr. Ben ChapmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimates have been made of levels of carbon dioxide production as a result of building wind farms. [187570]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienA number of studies have estimated the overall environmental cost of building wind power generation based on energy payback or life cycle analysis. These calculations project the energy output as a ratio of energy required to build, maintain and decommission the power station.
The average wind farm in the UK will pay back the energy used in its manufacture within three to five months, and over its lifetime a wind turbine will produce over 30 times more energy than was used in building, maintenance and decommissioning according to a study commissioned by the British Wind Energy Association.