Given that the economies of most OPEC nations are based almost exclusively on oil revenues, their goal is to maximize these revenues for at least another 100 years. The last thing they want to see is some breakthrough in technology that could drive down the cost of producing renewable energy. As this analyst relayed to me, their strategy is to keep oil prices volatile enough so that capital won't flow to develop other energy sources. Despite this, the deregulation of the electric utility industry in the U.S., legislation in Europe, and gradual technological improvements have quietly been bringing startling demands in growth for wind power over the past few years. Wind power is now cheaper to produce than coal power and is approaching the cost of energy derived from other fossil fuels.
Wind also offers the advantage of steady, predictable pricing.
The industry has been growing at more than 25 percent per year, a gale pace we think will likely continue over the foreseeable future. Growth in Europe is running at an even faster pace. Our favorite company in this sector is the Danish windmill maker Vestas. Its stock is fairly expensive, though, and doesn't trade on U.S. stock exchanges, thereby making it a little difficult to buy and not something we are currently recommending. Our current favorite wind-energy stock is York Research , which not only has a very cheap valuation but excellent growth prospects.