Impact on Other Generating Resources...
New Nebraska Wind Integration Study Released

In March 2010, the Nebraska Power Association published results of a year-long, statewide study, Nebraska Statewide Wind Integration Study Main Report, that determined various cost and operational impacts of adding large amounts of wind-powered generation to the state’s electric power grid.

The study examined the cost to integrate wind-powered resources into the state’s existing generation mix at much higher levels than exists today. The specific levels evaluated included new wind-powered generation, as a percent of total Nebraska electricity needs at 10, 20 and 40 percent levels for the base year 2018.

A key finding of the study was that in addition to the physical infrastructure and operating costs for the wind turbines and equipment and the associated transmission facilities, there is an extra 10 percent cost for the wind energy to the Nebraska utilities, or $5.41 a megawatt-hour, to integrate the wind generation into the state’s resource generation mix. This cost was evaluated at the 10 percent wind generation level and takes into consideration the expense of using other generation facilities to help balance the wind resource’s added variability and uncertainty.

Results of the study were determined by using large-scale computer models and data from an existing three-year database of wind details. The study looked at year 2018 across a broad 25- state area.

The Nebraska wind-powered generation amounts modeled from 1,249 to 4,727 megawatts — 8 to 31 times the amount of wind-powered generation currently operating in the state. This compares to approximately 8,700 megawatts of other “non-wind” generation resources expected to be available in Nebraska in 2018.

The study was paid for with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory and matched by the NPA utilities with in-kind labor and some funding. Other study participants included a 37-member Technical Review Committee comprised of national experts and stakeholders inside and outside of Nebraska.

Nebraska Wind Power Policy Studies