Morris's Comments

I believe nameplate capacity refers to the maximum design capacity of the wind turbine. For instance, the Vestas V90 (?) is a 3 Megawatt nameplate capacity wind turbine. However, it doesn't always produce a full 3 megawatts under operation, depending on a variety of factors (siting, actual wind speeds, demand, etc). The same applies to other power plants, e.g. gas turbines, which may not be operated at full nameplate capacity due to other factors (demand, cost of natural gas, maintenance considerations, etc). However, these factors are more under the control of the operating entity for a fossil fueled plant since they can choose to burn more fuel when more power is needed.

Long term, wind power has a large advantage in that the fuel is free forever. Only maintenance and lease costs are left. With design improvements, wind turbine efficiency can improve which will reduce long term costs.