S&P Promotes Wind Power As Energy Source

Sep 21 - United Press International

Credit rater Standard & Poor said Tuesday wind energy could be a viable alternative to oil amid higher petroleum prices.

Wind power remains often more expensive than traditional energy sources ... although it is becoming increasingly price competitive, said S&P credit analyst Jan Willem Plantagie.

The New York rating agency pointed out that while wind power makes up only a small fraction of global energy production, it is becoming increasingly popular in Europe, where 70 percent of global wind power is found.

But S&P said that India and other countries that are prone to energy shortages have also come to recognize the competitive advantage that wind power could deliver, compared to the more capital-intensive requirements of conventional energy sources.