Evaluation of the wind energy potential of two south west sites in Nigeria

Wind resource assessment is a crucial first step in gauging the potential of a site to produce energy from wind turbines. In this paper, the wind energy potential of Abeokuta (07 degrees 03' N, 03 degrees 19' E) and Ijebu-Ode (06 degrees 47' N, 03 degrees 58' E), two south west sites in Nigeria were examined. Twenty years (1990-2010) of monthly mean wind data from a 10 m height were subjected to two-parameter Weibull analysis and other statistical analyses. The results show that the average annual mean wind speed variation for Abeokuta ranges from 2.2 to 5.0 m/s. For Ijebu-Ode, it ranges from 2.0 to 5.0 m/s. The wind power density variation based on the Weibull analysis ranges from 4.26 to 24.51 W/m(2) for Abeokuta and from 8.54 to 76.46 W/m(2) for Ijebu-Ode. Ijebu-Ode was found to be the better of the two sites in terms of annual variation of mean wind speed.