“Climate neutrality and the Green Deal require Europe to install more than twice as much new wind energy each year compared to 2019”, said WindEurope CEO Giles Dickson on Monday 17 February.
Nevertheless, the organisation is emphasizing the progress made in this area. In 2019, 15.4 GW of new wind turbine infrastructure was installed in Europe (including the United Kingdom) - comprising 11.8 GW of onshore wind turbines and 3.6 GW of offshore wind turbines - an increase of 27% compared to 2018.
With a capacity of 205 GW, wind energy in Europe accounted for 15% of total electricity consumption in 2019. This figure still falls far short of the European Union’s target of increasing the share of wind power in the EU’s energy mix to 50% by 2050, Dickson said.
In his view, building twice as many wind turbines as in 2019 requires “a new approach to planning and permitting as well as continued investment in power grids”.
He also added: “National Energy and Climate Plans [NECPs] for 2030 are essential in this regard. The EU must ensure that they are ambitious and rigorously implemented”. Eight Member States have still not yet submitted their NECPs to the European Commission (see EUROPE 12421/5). (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)