Energy

17 Facts About Wind Power

GM's first wind project will generate 34 megawatts of energy from 17 turbines. Here are 17 facts about wind energy and the company's latest renewable energy project.
Feb 17, 2015 2:55 PM ET
Campaign: GM Energy Efficiency

FastLane

Today we announced the expansion of our renewable energy portfolio. GM has signed a power purchase agreement to procure 34 megawatts of wind energy to power four of our Mexico facilities. Thirty-four megawatts is a lot of power. So much, in fact, that it takes about 17 wind turbines to generate it. So we’ve pulled together 17 facts about wind energy and our latest renewable energy project.

  1. This is GM’s first use of wind power.
  2. Wind energy was first developed in China and Persia over 4,000 years ago through the use of windmills.
  3. The first electricity-generating wind turbine was invented in 1888 by Charles F. Brush.
  4. A typical wind turbine generates 2 to 2.5 megawatts of energy.
  5. Modern wind turbines produce 15 times more electricity than the typical turbine did in 1990.
  6. When this project is complete, more than 12 percent of our North American energy consumption will come from renewable energy sources.
  7. The power produced by 34 megawatts of wind is 180,000,000 megawatt hours, which could charge 22,500,000 Chevrolet Volts.
  8. Our current renewable energy portfolio is comprised of solar, landfill gas and waste to energy. These sources amount to 104 megawatts of renewable energy.
  9. We set a goal to use 125 megawatts of renewable energy by 2020. This project will allow us to reach the goal four years early.
  10. Energy generated by the wind turbines will power most of GM’s Toluca Complex – a facility sitting on 104 acres.
  11. The remaining capacity will help power three other facilities – our Silao, San Luis Potosi and Ramos Arizpe complexes.
  12. In 2013, these four facilities organized several tree plantings in their plant communities, resulting in 8,000 new trees.
  13. Our Silao facility just completed its first renewable energy project at the end of last year – a 20 kilowatt solar array.
  14. Mexico was identified as a good fit for our first wind project because energy is fed to a national grid, making it easier to add or reduce capacity at various facilities.
  15. The cost for traditional power in Mexico is about a third greater than in the United States, another good reason for finding alternatives, like wind.
  16. The use of wind power will avoid nearly 40,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually, equivalent of taking 8,421 passenger vehicles off the road.
  17. We signed the power purchase agreement with Enel Green Power, which is developing and constructing a massive wind farm in Palo Alto, Mexico, a site most famous for the Battle of Palo Alto between the United States and Mexico.