Wind farm
New installations place the U.S. on a trajectory to generate 20% of the nation’s electricity by 2030 from wind energy. Growth in 2008 channeled some $17 billion into the economy, positioning wind power as one of the leading sources of new power generation in the country, along with natural gas. Wind projects completed in 2008 accounted for about 42% of the entire new power-producing capacity added in the U.S. during the year.
Wind power in the United States
The Energy Information Administration has reported that wind power received the largest share of direct federal subsidies and support in fiscal year 2013 (the latest year for which statistics are available), accounting for 37% ($5.936 billion) of total electric power related subsidies. Almost three-quarters of wind energy subsidies in that year were direct expenditures and largely resulted from the ARRA programs. These figures do not include subsidies and supports from other levels of government.