Wind power in the European Union

According to the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) report of February 2011, there are over 12,000 wind turbines in Europe with a total capacity of 84 GW. The European Union accounts for over 98% of that total.[1][2] In 2010, €12.7 billion was invested in EU wind farms and 9.3 GW of new power capacity was installed. 9.1% of the total energy capacity of the EU now comes from wind, up from just 2.2% in 2000.[3] In a normal wind year, 5.3% of the EU's electricity is produced from wind power.[4]

As of January 2011, offshore wind farms account for approximately 3.5% of capacity. There are 1,136 offshore turbines installed, totalling 2.9GW in 45 wind farms in 9 countries.[5]

The world's wind power capacity grew to 158GW in 2009 and the industry is now worth about €45 billion, employing half a million people. Europe therefore accounts for just under half of wind capacity in the world.[6] The leading countries in Europe are Germany (26.4GW) and Spain (20.7GW) followed far behind by the UK (5.2GW), France (5.2GW) and Italy (4.9GW). A total of 20 countries have a capacity of more than 100MW.[3]

A European Environment Agency report, entitled Europe's onshore and offshore wind energy potential confirms wind energy could power Europe many times over.[7] The report highlights wind power’s potential in 2020 as three times greater than Europe’s expected electricity demand, rising to a factor of seven by 2030.[8]

The EWEA estimates that 230GW of wind capacity will be installed in Europe by 2020, consisting of 190GW onshore and 40GW offshore. This would produce 14-17% of the EU's electricity, avoiding 333 million tonnes of CO2 per year and saving Europe €28 billion a year in avoided fuel costs.[4]

Research from a wide variety of sources in various countries shows that support for wind power is consistently between 70 and 80 per cent amongst the general public.[9]

Contents

By country

Germany

Main article: Wind power in Germany

Germany is the world's third largest user of wind power, behind China and the United States, with an installed capacity of 27,214 MW in 2010 and projected capacity of 29,000 MW in 2011[10] followed by Spain which had an installed capacity of 20,674 MW at the end of 2010.[11] More than 21,163 wind turbines are located in the German federal area and the country has plans to build more wind turbines.[12]

Wind power in Germany produces about seven percent of the country's total power. Wind power in Germany provides over 90,000 people with jobs and German wind energy systems are also exported.[12]

However, the economics of wind power in Germany are under close scrutiny[13] and other issues deserve consideration. These include the effect of wind turbines on the landscape, the bird population, and the tourist industry.[12]

Spain

Main article: Wind power in Spain

Spain is the leading generator of wind energy in Europe and the second country (after Germany) in installed capacity as of 2011.[14] Wind power alone covered 16.6% of the total electricity demand in Spain in 2010 (according to Red Eléctrica de España, the Spanish system operator) and continues as the third technology in the system, after nuclear power and combined cycles. Wind energy’s installed capacity could meet the electricity needs of two thirds of Spanish households. In 2010, the electricity sector reduced its CO2 emissions by 26% thanks to wind energy.[15][16] “Spain holds these positions as a result of the establishment of a stable regulatory framework, better understanding of the resource, and improved technology that have afforded considerable cost reduction in terms of initial investment, maintenance, and exploitation”.[15]

Denmark

Main article: Wind power in Denmark

Wind power in Denmark provides some 20 per cent of Danish domestic electricity[17] and Denmark is a leading wind power nation in the world. The Danes were pioneers in developing commercial wind power during the 1970s and today almost half of the wind turbines around the world are produced by Danish manufacturers such as Vestas.[18]

The Danish wind turbine industry is the world’s largest and 90% of the wind turbines manufactured in Denmark are sold to international markets. In 2003, the Danish manufacturers had a total world market share of approximately 38%, generating a combined turnover of almost 3 billion Euro and maintaining over 20,000 people employed in the industry, from wind turbine factories to maintenance and research.[18]

The development of wind power in Denmark has been characterised by a close collaboration between publicly financed research and industry in key areas such as research and development, certification, testing, and the preparation of standards.[17]

United Kingdom

Main article: Wind power in the United Kingdom
Main article: Wind power in Scotland

In February 2011 the installed capacity of wind power in the United Kingdom passed the 5 GW milestone, equivalent to two coal fired power stations, with the opening of the Braes O'Doune wind farm, near Stirling. The UK is the seventh country in the world to reach this capacity.[19]

Romania

Main article: Wind power in Romania

As of 2010, wind power in Romania has an installed capacity of 462 MW, up from the 14.1 MW installed capacity in 2009.[20] Romania has a high wind power potential of around 14,000 MW and a power generating capacity of 23 TWh. The main regions of great potential of wind are Dobrogea and Moldavia.

Republic of Ireland

Main article: Wind power in the Republic of Ireland

Ireland is the best location in Europe for wind power as it is situated on the Western edge of Europe and is exposed to high winds from the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea. Wind power capacity factors tend to be higher in Ireland than anywhere else. By the end of 2008 the installed capacity of wind power in Ireland was 1,244.7 MW.[21]

Most wind farms in Ireland are located in coastal regions and especially in the West of Ireland. However, the Irish Sea is getting some attention and the first offshore wind farm in Ireland is located a few kilometers north of Arklow and 10 km out to sea and is known as the Arklow Bank Wind Park. This is set to expand in the future. Other proposals are an offshore wind farm on the Kish Bank which is about 15 kilometers offshore from Dublin, the capital city. With another planned wind farm at Clogherhead (north of Drogheda, south of Dundalk), to be called the Oriel Wind Farm.The Codling windfarm, planned for the south Irish Sea, will have a capacity of 1100MW with 330 turbines, giving a huge boost to wind generated power in Ireland.

Lithuania

The Lithuanian government is planning on mimicking Baltic neighbor Denmark, which generates 20 percent of its energy with wind turbines. Lithuanian government have plans to build 200 megawatts of renewable energy by 2010 in wind turbines.[22]

Statistics

Total capacity

EU Wind Energy Capacity (MW)[23][24]
No Country 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998
- EU-27 84,074 74,767 64,712 56,517 48,069 40,511 34,383 28,599 23,159 17,315 12,887 9,678 6,453
1 Germany 27,214 25,777 23,897 22,247 20,622 18,415 16,629 14,609 11,994 8,754 6,113 4,442 2,875
2 Spain 20,676 19,149 16,689 15,131 11,623 10,028 8,264 6,203 4,825 3,337 2,235 1,812 834
3 Italy 5,797 4,850 3,736 2,726 2,123 1,718 1,266 905 788 682 427 277 180
4 France 5,660 4,492 3,404 2,454 1,567 757 390 257 148 93 66 25 19
5 UK 5,952 5,204 4,051 2,974 2,406 1,962 1,332 904 667 552 474 406 362 333
6 Portugal 3,898 3,535 2,862 2,150 1,716 1,022 522 296 195 131 100 61 60
7 Denmark 3,752 3,465 3,163 3,125 3,136 3,128 3,118 3,116 2,889 2,489 2,417 1,771 1,443
8 Netherlands 2,245 2,229 2,225 1,747 1,558 1,219 1,079 910 693 486 446 433 361
9 Sweden 2,163 1,560 1,048 788 571 509 442 399 345 293 231 220 174
10 Ireland 1,428 1,260 1,027 795 746 496 339 190 137 124 118 74 73
11 Greece 1,208 1,087 985 871 746 573 473 383 297 272 189 112 39
12 Poland 1,107 725 544 276 153 83 63 63 27 0 0 0 0
13 Austria 1,011 995 995 982 965 819 606 415 140 94 77 34 30
14 Belgium 911 563 415 287 194 167 96 68 35 32 13 6 6
15 Romania 1,009 462 14 11 8 3 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
16 Bulgaria 375 177 120 57 36 10 10 0 0 0 0 0 0
17 Hungary 295 201 127 65 61 17 3 3 3 0 0 0 0
18 Czech Republic 215 192 150 116 54 28 17 9 3 0 0 0 0
19 Finland 197 146 143 110 86 82 82 52 43 39 39 39 17
20 Lithuania 154 91 54 54 51 48 6 6 0 0 0 0 0
21 Estonia 149 142 78 59 32 32 6 2 2 0 0 0 0
22 Cyprus 82 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
23 Luxembourg 42 35 35 35 35 35 35 22 17 15 10 10 9
24 Latvia 31 28 27 27 27 27 27 27 24 0 0 0 0
25 Slovakia 3 3 5 5 5 5 3 0 0 0 0 0
26 Slovenia 0.03 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
27 Malta 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
- EU-27 Offshore 2,946 2,061 1,471 1,088
28 Turkey 1,329 801 458
29 Norway 441 431 429 333 314 267 160 101
30 Croatia 89 28
31 Ukraine 87 94 90 89 86 77
32 Switzerland 42 18 14 12 12 12
33 Russia 9 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
34 Iceland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
- Europe (MW) 86,075 76,152 65,741 57,136 48,563 40,898

Per capita capacity

Wind power today, in an average wind year, generates the equivalent of over 20% of Denmark’s electricity use and 25–30% of that in three German Länder, and on windy days with light loads, over 100% of the load in certain regions, particularly in West Denmark, North Germany, and northern Spain.[25]

Wind power
 % of electricity and per person[26][27][28][29]
2007 2008 2009 2010
Country  % electricity W/person W/person W/person W/person
 Denmark 21.3 579 581 627.5 686.6
 Spain 11.8 367 370 415.5 449.6
 Portugal 9.3 203 270 332.5 366.4
 Germany 7.0 270 291 315.3 332.7
 Ireland 8.4 193 228 283.1 319.6
 Sweden 1.3 88 111 166.9 231.6
Average 3.8 116 131 149.2 168.3
 Netherlands 3.4 107 136 134.0 135.4
 Austria 3.3 120 119 118.8 120.7
 Estonia 1.8 45 58 111.3 111.0
 Greece 3.7 78 88 96.1 106.9
 Cyprus 0 0 0 0 102.1
 Italy 1.7 47 63 80.3 96.1
 France 1.2 40 53 69.9 87.5
 Luxembourg 1.1 71 90 86.2 86.2
 United Kingdom 1.8 40 54 65.3 83.9
 Belgium 0.7 28 36 52.0 81.9
 Bulgaria 0.5 10 21 23.4 49.6
 Lithuania 1.1 15 19 27.3 46.3
 Finland 0.3 21 27 27.3 36.8
 Poland 0.4 7 12 18.5 31.0
 Hungary 0.4 6 12 20.1 29.3
 Czech Republic 0.4 11 14 18.4 20.5
 Romania 0.0 0 1 1 19.5
 Latvia 0.9 12 12 12.5 13.8
 Slovenia 0.0 1 1 1 0.9

See also

References

  1. ^ http://ewea.org/fileadmin/ewea_documents/documents/statistics/EWEA_Annual_Statistics_2010.pdf
  2. ^ "European Wind Energy Association - EWEA: European Statistics". EWEA. 2011-04-01. http://ewea.org/index.php?id=1486. Retrieved 2011-04-24. 
  3. ^ a b http://ewea.org/fileadmin/ewea_documents/documents/statistics/100401_General_Stats_2009.pdf
  4. ^ a b http://www.ewea.org/fileadmin/swf/factsheet/1_statisticsandtargets.pdf
  5. ^ http://ewea.org/fileadmin/ewea_documents/documents/00_POLICY_document/Offshore_Statistics/110120_Offshore_stats_Exec_Sum.pdf
  6. ^ "European Wind Energy Association - EWEA: Global Statistics". EWEA. 2011-04-01. http://ewea.org/index.php?id=1487. Retrieved 2011-04-24. 
  7. ^ "Europe's onshore and offshore wind energy potential — EEA". Eea.europa.eu. 2009-06-08. http://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/europes-onshore-and-offshore-wind-energy-potential. Retrieved 2011-04-24. 
  8. ^ "EEA report confirms wind energy could power Europe many times over". Eolic Energy News. 2009-06-15. http://www.eolicenergynews.org/?p=1329#more-1329. Retrieved 2011-04-24. 
  9. ^ Fact sheet 4: Tourism
  10. ^ "EWEA.org" (PDF). http://ewea.org/fileadmin/ewea_documents/documents/statistics/EWEA_Annual_Statistics_2010.pdf. Retrieved 2011-03-28. 
  11. ^ "Asociación Empresarial Eólica - Spanish Wind Energy Association". Aeeolica.es. 2010-12-31. http://www.aeeolica.es/en/index.php. Retrieved 2011-04-24. 
  12. ^ a b c "Wind energy in Germany – overview". Wind-energie.de. http://www.wind-energie.de/en/wind-energy-in-germany/overview/. Retrieved 2011-04-24. 
  13. ^ Bowler, Tim (2006-05-28). "Germany's wind farms challenged". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4944046.stm. Retrieved 2011-04-24. 
  14. ^ http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2011/04/spanish-wind-generated-more-power-than-germanys-in-2010
  15. ^ a b Montes, G; Germán Martínez; Prados Martín, Enrique; Ordóñez García, Javier (2007). "The current situation of wind energy in Spain". Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. (Elsevier) 11 (3): 467–481. doi:10.1016/j.rser.2005.03.002. 
  16. ^ "UK wind power reaches milestone". BBC. 2007-02-09. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6344215.stm. Retrieved 2007-02-15. 
  17. ^ a b Wind energy: a visionary match
  18. ^ a b "The world's leader in Wind Power". Scandinavica.com. http://www.scandinavica.com/culture/nature/wind.htm. Retrieved 2011-04-24. 
  19. ^ "UK wind power portfolio reaches new milestone". Bwea.com. 2007-02-09. http://www.bwea.com/media/news/070209.html. Retrieved 2011-04-24. 
  20. ^ "Romania Ranks 7th In EU By Installed Wind Farm Capacity In 2010". Mediafaz. 2011-02-02. http://www.mediafax.ro/english/romania-ranks-7th-in-eu-by-installed-wind-farm-capacity-in-2010-7943901. Retrieved 2011-02-02. 
  21. ^ "World Wind Energy Report 2008" (PDF). http://www.wwindea.org/home/images/stories/worldwindenergyreport2008_s.pdf. Retrieved 2011-04-24. 
  22. ^ Dec 03, 2008 By Adam Mullett (2008-12-03). "Bridging Lithuania’s energy gap. Adam Mullett. December 3, 2008". Baltictimes.com. http://www.baltictimes.com/news/articles/21908/. Retrieved 2011-04-24. 
  23. ^ EWEA Staff (2010). "Cumulative installed capacity per EU Member State 1998 - 2009 (MW)". European Wind Energy Association. http://www.ewea.org/fileadmin/ewea_documents/documents/statistics/cumulative_wind_per_ms_1998_2009_ws.xls. Retrieved 2010-05-22. 
  24. ^ EWEA Staff (February 2011). "EWEA Annual Statistics 2010". European Wind Energy Association. http://ewea.org/fileadmin/ewea_documents/documents/statistics/EWEA_Annual_Statistics_2010.pdf. Retrieved 2011-01-31. 
  25. ^ Lovins, Amory B. (2005). Nuclear power: economics and climate-protection potential, see footnote 28.
  26. ^ Wind energy barometer 2008 EurObserv’ER Systèmes solaires Le journal des énergies renouvelables n° 189, 4/2009, p.54, 72
  27. ^ Wind energy barometer 2009 EurObserv’ER Systèmes solaires Le journal des énergies renouvelables n° 195, 3/2010, p.48
  28. ^ Wind energy barometer 2010
  29. ^ Pure Power, Wind Energy Scenarios up to 2030 EWEA April 2008 s. 20-21

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