Wind energy has come to stay as an important and a viable alternative source of energy. For securing maximum output of power using a given type of wind electric generator, an assessment of the wind resource available at any prospective site is essential. Wind data generated by meteorological services have their limitations; for accurate analysis, dedicated wind monitoring systems will have to be installed and their data made use of. Data from 220 such wind monitoring stations in India have been collected and analyzed and the salient features of the wind resource discussed. A mean annual wind speed (at 20 m above ground) of 18 kmph is considered as the minimum required for economic generation of electricity. With this criterion, only about half the area of the country comprising the southern and western regions have been found to possess adequate resources. The bulk of this wind resource is derived from the energy of the great southwest, monsoon system which blows over peninsular India from June toSeptember. Daily and, monthly variations in wind speed at typical locations are presented to bring out the highly seasonal behaviour of the wind resource. The significance of wind power density as an important parameter to judge the wind resource is brought out The capacity factor which is the ratio of the actual power output to the rated output of a typical 250 kW machine has been worked out using the frequency distributions of hourly wind speeds at 80 stations and the results presented.
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