Articles | Volume 20, issue 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/npg-20-305-2013
https://doi.org/10.5194/npg-20-305-2013
Brief communication
 | 
14 May 2013
Brief communication |  | 14 May 2013

Brief communication "Spatial and temporal variation of wind power at hub height over Europe"

S. Gisinger, G. J. Mayr, J. W. Messner, and R. Stauffer

Abstract. Wind power over Europe computed from two years of the new 100 m wind product from ECMWF at 16 km horizontal resolution is 20% of maximum capacity of an exemplary wind turbine power curve. This is five percent of maximum capacity less than extrapolated from 10 m winds using model roughness in the logarithmic law, but eight percent more than multiplying 10 m winds by a constant factor of 1.28 as in a previous study. The result from the new data set happens to be very close to the actual capacity factor of 21% for European wind turbines (Boccard, 2009). The capacity factor in high power regions between 50 and 58° N and most of northernmost Africa is almost 30%. The aggregation of wind power over Europe smooths onshore day-to-day fluctuations to at most 7 percentage points during 80% of the year.

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