ABSTRACT

Wind is one of the promising renewable sources which can substitute fast depleting fossil fuels sources. Windmills have been used for centuries to grind grain and pump water in rural areas. It has the advantage of being harnessed on a local basis for applications in rural areas and remote areas. Water pumping for agriculture and plantations is probably the most important application that contributes to the rural development through multiple cropping. Wind resource assessment is the primary step towards understanding the local wind dynamics of a region. Climatic average datasets of meteorological variables containing wind speed data for the period of 1961~1990 compiled from different sources were used for the potential assessment of wind speed in the district. These were validated with the data of meteorological observatories at Karwar, Honnavar  and Shirali  obtained from the Indian  Meteorological  Department, Government of India, Pune. Analysis showed the seasonal variation of wind speed in the region. Wind speed varies from 1.9 m/s (6.84 km/hr.) to 3.93 m/s (14.15 km/hr.) throughout the year with minimum in October and maximum in June and July. District experiences annual average wind of 2.5 m/s to 3.0 m/s in all taluks indicating the prospects for WECS installation. Hybridizing wind energy systems with other locally available resources (solar, bioenergy) would assure the reliable energy supply to meet the energy demand at decentralized levels.

Keyword: Windmill, Mean wind speed, Decentralized generation, Hybridization of resources.