All You Need to Know About Wind Energy

Updated from August 11.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, up to 20% of the country's energy supply could be generated by wind power by 2030.

In May, T. Boone Pickens' Mesa Power ordered 667 wind turbines from GE (GE - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr) as part of its plans for a giant wind farm in Texas.

That same month, Jim Cramer wrote on TheStreet.com: "Sanford Bernstein put out a fabulous report today [May 15] about alternative energy that waxed wonderfully about wind and a little less wonderfully about solar. The latter isn't as loved, because the average selling price of solar is too high vs. the dirty competition."

On July 17, The Dallas Morning News reported that the Texas Public Utility Commission authorized $4.93 billion of new wind power transmission lines, solidifying the state's position as the country's largest generator of wind power.

Five days later, at a hearing of the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Pickens testified that the county needs to reduce its demand for foreign oil and ramp-up its own clean and renewable energy infrastructure, particularly wind.

Tuesday, at the National Clean Energy Summit in Las Vegas, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg proposed his plan to make New York City a leader in clean power production -- again, the focus was on wind.

So how much do you really know about wind energy?

The following are key insights from TheStreet.com on the potential opportunities and risks in wind energy investing.

China Watch: A-Power's a Sparkler (Video, Aug. 11)

Larsen Kusick of the Breakout Stocks portfolio sheds light on A-Power (APWR - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), a company entering the wind-power industry in China, and explains how to play it.

To watch the video, click the player below: