Newsarchive - WindEurope

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WindEurope

Newsarchive - WindEurope 4

UK Energy Strategy further increases offshore targets, leaves door open for onshore

04/14/2022

Last week the United Kingdom presented its new Energy Strategy. It is heavily influenced by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the desire to increase energy security by reducing the import of fossil fuels. The UK now commits to phase out Russian oil and coal by the end of 2022 and to reduce total gas consumption by over 40% by 2030. To offset this reduction in imported fuels, the UK wants even more offshore wind. The Strategy is rather disappointing on onshore wind, yet it leaves the door open for future onshore wind development.

Without grid enhancements Europe won’t reach its climate goals

04/11/2022

Electrification is the most cost-effective way to decarbonise Europe’s economy. Direct and indirect electrification will make up 75% of Europe’s energy demand by 2050. The European Commission wants wind to be half of the EU’s electricity by then. However, this can only happen if power grids are optimised and expanded in a timely manner.

Germany gets ready to deploy more than 10 GW of new wind per year with historic package

04/08/2022

The German Government passed the so-called “Easter Package”, the most profound series of changes to German energy policy since the introduction of competitive auctions in 2017. By 2030 Germany aims for 80% renewables in total electricity consumption. Already from 2025 onwards Germany wants to install 10 GW of new onshore wind energy every year alone. To deliver this expansion in onshore wind the Government proposal increases annual auction volumes to up to 12 GW. The package also increased the German offshore wind targets, meaning that Germany will build more than 10 GW of new wind every year from 2025.

Wind-based electrification and sufficient charging points are key to zero-emission transport

03/21/2022

On Friday 18 March WindEurope contributed to a high-level roundtable organised by ACEA, the European Vehicle Manufacturers Association, along with major vehicle manufacturers and industry associations. In a joint declaration, WindEurope and other key associations called on European policymakers to implement the right policies to back the transition towards zero-emission transport.

Germany has turned the corner on onshore wind

03/21/2022

The German Energy Regulator (Bundesnetzagentur) has announced the results of Germany’s latest onshore wind auction. After almost two years of undersubscribed auctions it was the second consecutive auction that was oversubscribed. And that’s not the only good news for onshore wind in Germany. The permitting numbers are up. And the new Government wants to scale up the build-out of new onshore wind.

WindEurope strongly supports a higher target for offshore wind for Belgium

03/17/2022

Belgium’s Minister of Energy Tinne Van der Straeten called for Belgium to raise its offshore wind target to 8 GW. That’s up from 5.7 GW under its existing 2030 target.

Europe wants more renewables to increase its energy security

03/11/2022

Last week, the European Commission presented new measures in response to the rise in electricity prices across Europe. The measures are strongly influenced by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Commission wants Europe to accelerate renewables deployment to increase energy security and in particular reduce its dependency on fossil fuel imports from Russia.

More renewables mean huge investments, so don’t tamper with market rules

03/07/2022

The current crisis highlights the need to improve Europe’s energy security. Which means more renewables ASAP. The EU and national governments clearly get this. Germany’s Finance Minister Christian Lindner recently called renewables “freedom energies”.

Romanian price measures undermine the country’s electricity market

02/25/2022

The Romanian Government introduced a set of three measures to tackle high energy prices. The underlying thought behind these new rules is to support consumers who would struggle otherwise. But they are simultaneously putting excessive pressure on power generators and distributors.

France sends mixed messages on wind energy expansion

02/25/2022

French President Emmanuel Macron recently presented his vision for the country’s path to carbon neutrality by 2050. If elected in the French elections in April this is the strategy he’ll move forward with. The plan entails a massive expansion of offshore wind, solar and some new nuclear power plants. But the onshore wind plans are much less ambitious.

Norway announces first offshore wind auction

02/22/2022

Last week the Norwegian Government announced that they will hold the country’s first offshore wind auction in the second half of 2022. The auction will have a total capacity of 1.5 GW. Further offshore wind auctions will follow. Despite the announcement, the Norwegian wind industry is not completely content.

Messy permitting leads to yet another undersubscribed wind auction in Italy

02/02/2022

Italy has published the results of its latest renewables auction. 3,300 MW was on offer, including non-awarded capacity from previous undersubscribed auctions. But only 975 MW of utility-scale projects were awarded, of which 392 MW were onshore wind. Yet again the lack of permitted projects led to an undersubscribed auction. The backlog of non-awarded renewables capacity in Italy keeps piling up.

Scotland awards seabed rights for massive amounts of offshore wind, most of it floating

01/18/2022

The Crown Estate Scotland has announced the results of the “ScotWind” seabed tender. They auctioned 8,600 km² of sea space which could host almost 25 GW of offshore wind. 17 projects won. With 15 GW most of the capacity that will now be developed will be floating offshore wind. The system the Scots have used for awarding seabed leases ensures the new offshore wind farms will be delivered at the lowest cost for consumers and taxpayers.

New Dutch Government is seriously ambitious on climate and wind energy

01/17/2022

Nine months after elections took place in the Netherlands a new Government has now taken office. It’s a coalition of four parties: VVD, D66, CDA and the Christian Union. And it has a very ambitious agenda on climate change and energy.

Germany announces massive renewables expansion

01/12/2022

During a press conference, Germany’s new Green Minister for Economics and Climate, Robert Habeck, presented his energy and climate plans for the year 2022 and beyond. The plans include a massive expansion of wind energy with up to 10 GW of annual new onshore wind installations towards the end of this decade.

Spain issues plan for up to 3 GW offshore wind by 2030 – in perfect time for WindEurope 2022 in Bilbao!

12/21/2021

Spain approved its first Offshore Wind Roadmap last week. It aims to kickstart the deployment of offshore wind with a view to having up to 3 GW operating by 2030. Given Spain’s geography it’ll all be floating offshore wind. Ports and shipyards across Spain already play a key role in the supply chain for offshore wind in the rest of Europe. The new Roadmap will stimulate the further development of Spain’s floating wind supply chain. The celebration of the WindEurope annual event 2022 in Bilbao on 5-7 April will be a perfect opportunity to focus on this.

Norway needs more onshore and offshore wind to keep up with growing energy demand

12/20/2021

In November WindEurope CEO Giles Dickson spoke at the Norwegian Wind Energy Association’s annual conference and met with Energy State Secretary Amund Vik, Secretary General in the Energy Mnistry Andreas Eriksen and the Energy Regulator Kjetil Lund.

New German Government to speed up wind energy expansion

12/16/2021

The new German Government is up and running. The coalition of Social Democrats, Greens and Liberals brands itself a “climate Government”. They’ve agreed that Germany should exit coal-fired power earlier than planned – in 2030 if possible. And that much more renewable energy will be required to achieve that. So they’ve ambitious plans for the expansion of wind energy – both onshore and offshore.

Spain auctions 2.2GW of onshore wind and retracts clawback measures

11/16/2021

The Spanish Government published the results of its 3.3GW technology-neutral renewable energy auction. Onshore wind won a total of 2.258MW at an average of €30.18. This is amongst the cheapest strike prices in Europe ever and only slightly above the price in January’s auction in Spain.

Lithuanian offshore auction design proposals jeopardise the low-cost delivery of projects

11/16/2021

Lithuania is preparing its regulatory framework for the development of offshore wind in its waters. And new proposed auction rules have recently emerged in the Lithuanian Parliament which will jeopardise the delivery of projects at the lowest cost for society.

Ireland’s offshore ambitions are starting to take off

10/18/2021

The Irish Government has opened a consultation for its first ever offshore wind auction. This is the first step in Ireland’s ambitious plan of having 5 GW of offshore wind by 2030.

Serbia can be a champion of wind energy in the Western Balkans

10/05/2021

On 15 September WindEurope CEO Giles Dickson spoke at the inaugural conference of the recently created Serbian Renewable Energy Association, RES Serbia, with the Deputy Prime Minister and Energy State Secretary of Serbia.

Wind industry & Government commit to boosting offshore wind and jobs in Poland

09/28/2021

On 15 September 2021 Poland signed its first Offshore Wind Sector Deal. This Government-industry collaboration aims to establish a leading offshore wind industry in Poland. Under the Sector Deal the industry commits to the creation of up to 60,000 direct and indirect jobs in Poland’s wind industry by 2040. The Government in turn reinforces Poland’s ambitions to accelerate the energy transition with renewables by launching a new auction system and carrying out competitive auctions for offshore wind from 2025.

Spanish measures on electricity undermine EU Green Deal

09/28/2021

The Spanish Government has introduced a new charge on wind farms and other non-polluting power plants to “compensate” for the higher revenue they say they’re earning as a result of higher wholesale electricity prices. They argue that high gas prices have driven up electricity prices, that wind farms don’t have to buy gas so they’re earning “windfall profits”.

Turkey reaches 10 GW wind energy milestone

09/13/2021

Turkey has rapidly developed into a leading market for wind energy. The country lately celebrated an important milestone: it reached a cumulative wind energy capacity of 10,000 MW. Turkey’s large territory and excellent wind speeds offer ideal conditions for wind energy production. Over the past decade the country has developed a strong wind energy supply chain.

Offshore wind continues to break new boundaries

08/31/2021

Offshore wind continues to break new boundaries. Europe has 120 offshore wind farms already. The EU wants much more and sees offshore wind producing around 20% of our power by 2050. The first 6 months of this year have seen some significant developments which give confidence that this can be achieved.

New German Government must make wind energy a top priority again

08/27/2021

On 26 September Germany will elect a new Parliament. The election will mark the end of the 16-year reign of Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU). Regardless of the outcome of the election, WindEurope, the German Wind Energy Association (BWE) and VDMA Power Systems call on the new Federal Government to acknowledge the central role of wind energy as the backbone of the German energy system and to remove the existing obstacles to wind energy expansion.

Spanish offshore wind reaches key milestone

08/10/2021

Spain is a European leader in wind energy. But it is yet to enter into commercial offshore wind development. The Spanish Government now closed the consultation for Spain’s first Offshore Wind Roadmap, a key milestone on the way towards Spain’s first commercial offshore wind farms.

Europe must get its State aid rules right to have any chance of delivering climate neutrality