Here's what the Department of Energy had to say:

"We are pleased to announce that the U.S. Department of Energy¹s Wind and Hydropower Technologies Program today released its first ever ³Annual Report on U.S. Wind Power Installation, Cost, and Performance Trends:
2006.² This report ­ authored primarily by Ryan Wiser and Mark Bolinger of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory ­ provides a comprehensive overview of trends in the U.S. wind power market, with a particular focus on 2006.

The need for such a report has become apparent in the past few years, as the wind power industry has entered an era of substantial growth, both globally and in the United States. Drawing from a variety of sources, this report ­ the first in what is envisioned to be an ongoing annual series ­ provides information on a variety of topics, including:

€ Wind project installation trends
€ Wind industry trends
€ Evolution of wind power sales prices
€ Installed wind project costs
€ Wind turbine prices
€ Wind project performance
€ O&M cost trends
€ Integration, transmission, and policy developments

Of particular note, data on U.S. project-level wind power pricing, installed project costs, O&M expenses, and wind project performance have not previously been summarized in as comprehensive a fashion as provided in this report.

The report can be downloaded at:
http://www1.eere.energy.gov/windandhydro/pdfs/41435.pdf
(hard copies will be available at the U.S. DOE¹s exhibition booth at WINDPOWER 2007)

A PowerPoint presentation based on the report can be found at:
http://www1.eere.energy.gov/windandhydro/pdfs/wiser_data_report_summary_2006
.pdf


We hope that this report will be of value, and that the planned annual updates will become a staple of the U.S. wind market for years to come.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact Ryan Wiser or Mark Bolinger at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Ryan: 510-486-5474, RHWiser@lbl.gov or Mark: 603-795-4937, MABolinger@lbl.gov).

Best regards, and we apologize in advance for any cross-postings.

Ryan Wiser and Mark Bolinger
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory"