Frequently
Asked
Questions
Why a wind turbine on UD’s Lewes campus?
UD officials chose wind power to meet its commitment to reduce its carbon footprint due to the favorable winds in the coastal area of Lewes and also for the educational and research opportunities it presents.
One hundred percent of the campus’ electricity is provided by wind power though this project, thus meeting all the campus’ electricity needs with no net carbon emissions and making it a model for other institutions in the nation. At times, the turbine generates more than enough power for the campus; the excess is fed to the electric grid for use by others in Lewes.
In addition to providing carbon-free electricity, the project enhances research in areas such as turbine corrosion, avian impacts, and policy issues related to renewable energy. Information gained from the project is helping the university and Gamesa work toward establishing the first offshore wind turbine in the Americas.
FAQ section.About Us
Aerial photo of UD main campus Newark, Delaware
University of Delaware
The University of Delaware, the flagship institution of the state of Delaware, is one of the oldest Land Grant institutions in the nation, and one of only three institutions to also have Sea Grant and Space Grant status. The university is classified by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching as a research university with very high research activity — a designation accorded fewer than 3 percent of U.S. colleges and universities. The university is a state-assisted, privately controlled institution with an enrollment of more than 16,000 undergraduates, 3,500 graduate students and 1,000 professional and continuing study students.
UD's Lewes campus sits near Delaware's coast in the southern part of the state. UD College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment
The College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment (CEOE) strives to advance our understanding of Earth’s natural systems and the interactions of humans with the environment through engaged interdisciplinary research, teaching, and outreach.
CEOE encompasses the School of Marine Science and Policy, the Department of Geography and the Department of Geology. The college is also home to the Delaware Geological Survey, the Delaware Sea Grant Program, the Delaware Geographic Alliance, the Scientific Committee for Oceanic Research, and the Joint Institute for Coastal Research and Management. The latter is in partnership with China’s Xiamen University.
Gamesa wind turbines Oiz, Spain Gamesa Technology Corporation, Inc.
Gamesa specializes in sustainable energy technologies, mainly wind power. Gamesa is the market leader in Spain and is positioned among the most important wind generator manufacturers in the world.
With an international workforce of some 7,000 employees, including 900 in the United States, Gamesa has installed over 16,000 megawatts of its main product lines in 20 countries over four continents. Gamesa has built or sold nearly 2,000 megawatts in wind turbines in the United States since 2003.
Total production amounts to more than 5.45 million tons of petroleum equivalent per year and prevents the emission into the atmosphere of more than 34 million tons of carbon dioxide a year, helping to reduce the harmful effects of global warming.
Headquartered in Spain, Gamesa is publicly traded on the Spanish stock exchange and included among others in the Dow Jones and FTSE4GOOD sustainability indexes. Gamesa also has production centers in Europe, China, and the United States.
Installation of a wind turbine. Sustainable Energy Developments, Inc.
Sustainable Energy Developments, Inc. (SED) works with municipalities, businesses, schools, farms, and homeowners to develop high quality, community-scale wind power projects. SED’s wind development services offer solutions to diverse energy challenges and provide a clear path to achieving project goals.
SED offers eight years of wind power specific experience in addition to relationships with turbine manufacturers, funding agencies, and financiers. This experience is highlighted by operational wind projects: a 1.5MW turbine at Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort in Hancock, MA; a 600kW turbine at Holy Name High School in Worcester, MA; five 100kW wind turbines at a school; a greenhouse business; an oceanographic institute; a Cistercian abbey; and a hotel. SED integrates the lessons learned from these completed projects into solutions for a project’s unique challenges.
