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Editorial

Wind power plant

There is an ongoing energy crisis in the coutry, plaguing our industrial and business activities, admistrative functions and many other aspects of our day-to-day life. The governemnt has been looking for alternative sources of enrgy to make up the deficit, such as nuclear energy and wind power generators The government will now set up a wind power plant having capacity of 100-200 MW in the country’s offshore area.
This was decided at a recent high level meeting at the Power Ministry.The decision was made in line with the government’s strategy to develop a diversified power sector. At present, 86 percent electricity is generated from gas-fired power plants while the rest comes mainly from liquid fuel. A very small amount of electricity is also being generated through solar power system. According to the Power Secretary , diversification of energy sources is one of the main strategies of the government to resolve the ongoing power crisis.
Wind energy as a power source is an attractive alternative to fossil fuel, because it is plentiful, renewable, widely distributed and clean, and it produces no greenhouse gas emissions. Though compared to onshore wind power, offshore wind power is more complex and costly to install and maintain, but also has several key advantages. Wind is stronger and more stable in flow at sea, resulting in significantly higher production per unit installed. Wind turbines can also be bigger in the offshore than on land because it is easier to transport very large turbine components by sea. Two years back, the state-owned Power Development Board (PDB) set up a small capacity wind power plant at Kutubdia on a pilot basis, but the total capacity of the plant is only one megawatt.But the new plant will be a large scale one New technologies innovated recently in the Westen countries now offer new machines, which can be suitable for different wind speeds.There there are huge potentials for wind power in the country, particularly offshore .The government should move for setting up more wind power plants if the first offshore one proves successful and economically viable. Different coastal and hill areas may be considered for setting up wind power plants.As Lenin said nearly a century ago, one of the bases of an econmically strong and progressive society is generation of enough electricity for all social and econmic needs ..