Time for leadership on U.S. energy future

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Energy drives geopolitics. It’s essential for a developed society, and it’s a precondition for a healthy population. Energy prices determine how slow or robust our economic growth is going to be.

Like it or not, energy literally drives the world we live in.

Now consider that the global population is projected to be at 9 billion by the year 2050.

In other words, as many people will join the world’s population in the coming four decades as have lived in the world since World War I.

Our planet’s ability to withstand this huge population increase will be severely constrained if we fail to find a sustainable solution to the problems associated with energy production and energy consumption.

That's a big challenge. We must deliver more energy as populations grow and emerging nations improve their standards of living. There's an opportunity to stabilize the world economy by bringing down the cost of energy. And in the United States, reducing our dependence on foreign sources without giving up quality of life is a matter of national security. Not to mention safeguarding the natural environment for future generations.

You'd probably expect me to say that wind is the answer. And you'd be partly right.

But the real answer lies in two simple words: diversity and profitability.

First, diversity: In the United States we're blessed with an abundance of energy resources – from traditional carbon-based fuels to newer clean technologies.

Like our population, our domestic energy supply is rich and diverse. Some states are rich in oil, some in gas, some in hydro, and many in wind, but few have it all.

While we should continue to use all of these resources to meet the growing energy demand, we must purposefully and diligently ramp down the usage of certain fossil fuels.

In this, we do not have a choice.

I came to wind from the natural gas industry, an industry that has succeeded in bringing very large quantities of “unconventional” shale gas to market at lower cost and in greater volumes than experts expected. That's good news. Cheaper domestic energy is good for the U.S. economy.

It's also good for wind. Wind should be the first choice for electric generation, but natural gas allows a wind power plant to efficiently produce power to feed the transmission grid when the wind isn’t blowing.

But, I don’t have to tell you that many of these diverse energy resources are finite — even the enormous natural gas shale plays will be depleted someday.

Additionally, most require water -- sometimes in enormous

Now the wind advertisement: Wind power, by any measure, is an exceptional choice. Wind produces no carbon. It is clean, fully renewable and uses virtually no water for electricity production.

It is true that our large manufacturing facilities require large amounts of power and some amount of water for production, and our component parts – steel, in particular – require water in manufacturing.

But, Vestas is very focused on reducing our own carbon footprint, putting wind turbines to work powering many of our own factories, and working with sub-suppliers to develop their own sustainable practices, including a reduction in water use.

Now on to the question of profitability.

We are running a business, after all. Wind is no longer a niche — a boutique — a “feel good” advertising ploy.

A wind farm is an industrial sized power plant, which must be reliable, dependable and flawless in execution. Renewable companies report to shareholders, meet payrolls, pay suppliers, borrow money. And to do all of this, renewable energy businesses must be profitable.

We must depend less on government subsidies and find ways to attract more free market investment. And we must do all of this in a fiercely competitive marketplace which is demanding a lower cost of energy.

We are answering the challenges in three ways:

1. We are investing heavily in clean energy innovation.

Vestas and other renewable companies are making sizable, sustained investments in clean energy research and development to reduce the weight and increase the strength and life of turbine components. We must develop lower cost machines that produce more power.

2. We are seeking an honest debate on a national energy policy.

The lack of a clear, long-term national energy policy is hurting the United States in our ability to compete on the global stage.Without long-term energy policy, companies cannot have business case certainty.

And without that certainty, they will not take the financial risks necessary to build new manufacturing and invest further in clean technology.

If we are serious about cleaning up our environment, improving our national security and rebuilding our national economic clout, the United States must put a price on carbon, level the energy playing field and move forward with serious electric infrastructure development.

This nation used to pride itself on its manufacturing prowess, but somewhere along the line, we lost our way.

Clean energy is helping to drive a new wave of manufacturing. In the U.S., there are nearly 500 manufacturing facilities that serve the wind industry alone and we must seize the momentum and build on it.

Additionally, the government must clear out the roadblocks to building new electric transmission lines and update our aging transmission grid.

3. We are working to stabilize energy prices.

Here’s where the beauty of wind really shines. Wind actually helps stabilize energy prices, because unlike fossil fuels, the wind is free and not subject to price fluctuations. It is clean, dependable and available at a predicable price.

But to really drive prices down, wind and other renewables must bring large-scale development to the table.

The green economy must harness the scale and muscle of the old economy to service new goals.

To be more than a buzzword the green economy must master industrial know-how, 21^st century logistics and capture the engineering and technical talent required.

In the wind industry, we are confident we can — and are — meeting this challenge.

Martha Wyrsch is the Portland-based president of global wind turbine company Vestas Americas.