Dr Van der Lingen (April 23) stated that wind power is unreliable and very
expensive. In fact, wind power is not expensive. Recent studies from the International Energy Agency, the US Department of
Energy, the UK's Department of Trade and Industry, and others, show that
electricity derived from the wind can, in New Zealand's high wind environment,
now be generated at prices which are directly competitive with coal-fired power
generation. Wind power, working in conjunction with New Zealand's substantial hydro
resource, is also not unreliable. The former president of the Institution of Professional Engineers of New
Zealand and director of the Centre for Advanced Engineering at the University of
Canterbury (John Blakeley), calls for "a very substantial and urgent
programme of constructing wind farms" and points out that "we can use
the storage capacity of our hydro lakes to balance fluctuating wind power
generation". JAMES GLENNIE Chief Executive New Zealand Wind Energy Association Wellington,
April 25 --------------------