The development of the WindMade label -- the first global consumer label for companies using wind energy -- has progressed swiftly since its introduction at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2011.
The proposed standard requires participating companies to source a minimum of 25 percent of their electricity demand from wind power. This level is set to strike a balance between an ambitious target and an achievable goal for progressive companies striving to make a tangible impact.
Following contributions from the public consultation, which will close on 15 August 2011, the final WindMade standard, which will be overseen by a non-profit organisation, is expected to be presented in September.
From that point forward, companies wishing to be WindMade approved will have to undergo a certification process. That process is still under development at this time.
“The initiative is backed by the wind power industry, and we believe that the label will build a bridge between consumers and companies committed to clean energy,” said Steve Sawyer, Chairman of the WindMade Board and Secretary General of the Global Wind Energy Council. ”We hope to see widespread participation in the public consultation and strongly encourage interested parties to review and comment on the standard.”
The public consultation period was launched at an event in New York City, which also saw the introduction of WindMade’s newly appointed CEO Henrik Kuffner.
“I firmly believe that today’s launch is the beginning of a movement that will make a real difference to investments in wind power around the world, and I am very excited to be given the opportunity to spearhead this effort” he said.
The proposed WindMade standard was developed by a technical committee, consisting of experts from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), AWEA, LEGO, Climate Friendly, Gold Standard, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and Vestas, with Öko-Institut and PwC acting as advisors. In addition, the first draft of the standard has been reviewed by a Sounding Board, which is comprised of representatives from international companies and organisations including Walmart, 3Degrees, Better Place, Dong Energy and others.
“Market-driven solutions like WindMade will increase voluntary purchasing of renewable energy, and complement the national and state standards that create the market,” said Elizabeth Salerno, Chief Economist for the American Wind Energy Association, and a member of the Technical Committee for WindMade.
Pioneered by Vestas Wind Systems, the WindMade™ initiative was founded as a cooperation between the GWEC, WWF, Vestas, LEGO, the UN Global Compact, PwC (as official Verification Partner), and Bloomberg (official Data Provider).
Elsewhere on Global Wind Day, organizers of the event posited that by 2015 wind power will result in a net savings of €23.7 billion in fuel costs, that total being comprised of €15.1 billion of avoided coal costs, €6.4 billion of avoided gas costs and €1.7 billion of avoided oil costs to produce electricity.
Further, the organizers said, by 2020 wind power will avoid €87 billion of fuel costs - made up of €46 billion of avoided gas costs, €27 billion of avoided coal costs, almost €10 billion of avoided oil costs and €4 billion of avoided biomass costs to produce electricity.
These figures were based on the International Energy Agency's data on fuel costs (IEA World Energy Outlook 2010) and Global Wind Energy Council data (GWEC, 2011, Outlook 2010) on "moderate" development of wind power with 460 GW of global cumulative wind power capacity installed by 2015.
Currently the global trend for installed wind power capacity is impressive, with capacity rising from 60 GW to 200 GW between 2005 and 2010.
Other Global Wind day events included wind farm “open houses” in Japan, Australia, Germany, and Italy; street fairs and related activities in France, Bulgaria, Austria, and Finland; photo or art competitions in Mexico, Croatia, Greece, Portugal, and Poland; and meetings intended to advance the development of wind energy resources in Argentina, Uruguay, Ukraine, and Romania.
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