According to an article in last weekend’s Observer, there is currently a worldwide shortage in wind turbines. Apparently tax perks in the US have generated a huge demand, sapping even European supplies and leaving new customers facing long delays, to such an extent that the target dates for the construction of new British wind farms are even being put back.

This is certainly bad news. More and more people are being converted to the cause, only to find that their desire to generate CO2 free power will have to wait several years. Exciting projects to enable rural villages to become completely self-sufficient and even generate revenue are being delayed for the foreseeable future, and far larger projects such as the building of offshore windfarms for the UK are going to miss their deadlines. None of this helps us in our overall goals to reduce our CO2 emissions.

There is however another way to look at this problem and see it as good news, the glass being half full and not half empty. Demand for wind power has reached such a level that the market just can’t keep up. In spite of the doubters, those who worry about noise pollution and ruining the landscape and of an inefficient technology, in spite of global warming deniers, more and more people and institutions are turning to wind power as a viable solution for generating renewable, CO2 free energy. Some have even cottoned on to the fact that you can save and even make money by selling on the excess electricity that you generate.

Yes, there are not enough turbines to go round today, but that has to be a good problem. So, for just a moment I’m going to celebrate the fact that maybe, just maybe, a first tipping point has been reached….. before starting to worry about the next issue: how can we produce more turbines fast enough to keep up with demand.

Answers on a postcard please!