More of America’s wind turbines are actually being built in America

[jpak]

http://grist.org/news/more-of-americas-wind-turbines-are-actually-being-built-in-america/

The equipment that’s powering America’s wind energy boom is increasingly being made right at home.

In 2007, just 25 percent of turbine components used in new wind farms in the U.S. were produced domestically. By last year, that figure had risen to 72 percent, according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Energy. And exports of such equipment rose to $388 million last year, up from $16 million in 2007.

This happened even as the U.S. was installing a whole lot of turbines. More than 13.1 gigawatts of new wind power capacity was added to the U.S. grid in 2012, representing $25 billion of investment. That made wind the nation’s fastest-growing electricity source last year, faster even than natural gas–fueled power.

Unfortunately, there were job losses in the sector last year, with the number of wind industry manufacturing jobs falling to 25,500 from 30,000 the year before. That’s because there was a lull and some factory closures after a mad scramble to fulfill orders placed before a federal tax credit expired. (It was renewed for this year, but its future is still up in the air.)

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[FogerRox]

1. Isnt GE #1 in the world, by installed capacity?

IIRC the vast majority of their content is made in the USA.

[Heywood J]

2. Built where in America?

The growing trend of prison labor has made this a question worth asking. I'm hoping the answer is something positive.