AWEA projects record market for wind power in 2003

The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) predicts that 2003 will be a record year for the wind market in the United States. Following an all-time high of 1,696MW of new installations in 2001, 2002 was expected to be a down year, especially when the extension of the Wind Production Tax Credit was delayed until March. AWEA is projecting 400 to 450MW of new wind capacity will be installed in the U.S. in 2002, a slight decrease from the 600 MW projected in April. A number of projects have been delayed until 2003 for a variety of reasons, but those delays do not reflect any fundamental change in the market. "We are projecting that well over 2,000MW of new wind capacity will be installed in the U.S. in 2003," said Randall Swisher, AWEA's executive director. "We have been stating that projection for much of this year, and our projection remains unchanged."