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Wind energy
A modern windmill is called 'wind turbine' and the sails are called 'rotor blades'. Wind turbines have three, two or even only one rotor blade. The taller the blades, the higher the energy production.
The first wind turbines in The Netherlands had a capacity of about 40 kilowatt (kW). Nowadays, 600 kW is usual. These wind turbines produce 1 to 1.5 million kWh of electricity a year, which is equal to the supply of renewable electricity to about 300 to 500 households during a year (an average household in The Netherlands uses about 3,200 kWh electricity annually).
The Netherlands has a wind energy capacity of nearly 410 megawatt (MW), producing about 675 million kWh of electricity.
Currently, wind energy is the fastest growing energy source in the world with an average annual growth of 20 to 30%. World wide wind energy capacity has passed 10,000 MW.
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