Demand for wind turbines in the U.S will rise 55 percent annually through 2018 to $18.9bn, says a new study from RnRMarketResearch.
This represents almost nine-fold increase over figures for 2013, which was overshadowed by the record $25bn sales of 2012.
This spike in sales was the result of electric utilities and other entities pushing up the timeline of many wind turbine  projects to take advantage of the production tax credit, which was due to expire at the end of 2012. As a result, when the production tax credit was renewed in January 2013, there were few orders left in the pipeline.
In fact, through the first three quarters of 2013, less than 75 megawatts of new wind power capacity was added in the US. The fourth quarter of 2013 saw a rush of installations similar to 2012, albeit to a significantly lesser degree, as firms again sought to take advantage of the expiring production tax credit. However, the production tax credit was left to expire at the end of 2013 and, as of March 2014, there has been no attempt to renew it.
There is also ongoing demand for small wind turbine systems from a small base, as well as continuing interest in developing renewable energy resources that are cleaner and not subject to fuel price shocks, GII said.
The emerging off-shore wind industry, which is expected to see its first significant wind turbine installation during the forecast period, will provide further gains. However, the uncertain future of the federal production tax credit and other incentives for wind energy will serve to prevent even more robust sales, the report said.
With the exception of a single small-scale prototype turbine off the coast of Maine in June 2013, all of the wind turbine systems installed in the US in 2013 were for onshore applications.
Local opposition, concerns about cost, and a developing regulatory process have postponed the installation of the country’s first offshore wind farm. However, this is expected to change going forward, as a number of projects are progressing toward the installation stage, the report said.
The Northeast had the lowest amount of installed wind energy capacity in the US in 2013, but is expected to benefit from the installation of the nation’s first offshore wind turbines. In addition, electricity costs in the Northeast are among the highest in the country, spurring the installation of renewable energy sources such as wind.
On the other hand, the South has a lot of available land with strong wind resources for wind farm development, particularly in Texas, a state that also has favorable regulations that entice utilities to develop wind farms. The ongoing trend of constructing wind farms in the West South Central and Mountain subregions and delivering the electricity to neighboring states will provide further impetus for growth, according to the report.