Europe adds 12.5 GW of new wind capacity in 2016 with record €27.5bn in new investments

Total wind capacity in Europe now stands at 153.7 GW. Wind energy covered 10.4% of Europe’s electricity needs last year.  Germany installed the most new wind power: 44% of the EU total.  Five Member States had a record year: France, the Netherlands, Finland, Ireland and Lithuania. Renewables altogether accounted for 86% of new EU power plant installations in 2016 - 21.1GW of 24.5 GW.

Investment in new onshore and offshore wind farms reached a record €27.5bn.  Offshore wind investments rose 39% year on year to €18.2bn, while onshore investments were down 29% at €9.3bn.

Giles Dickson, Chief Executive Officer of WindEurope, said: “Wind energy is now a mainstream and essential part of Europe’s electricity supply. It is also a mature and significant industry in its own right, now providing 330,000 jobs and billions of euros of European exports.    

“With all the talk about the transition to low-carbon, things should be looking good long-term for the wind industry in Europe. But they’re not. Government policy on energy across Europe is less clear and ambitious than it was a few years ago.  Only 7 out of 28 EU Member States have targets and policies in place for renewables beyond 2020.  The transition from feed-in tariffs to auctions has been less smooth than we hoped.  We still have dysfunctional electricity markets that are not fit for renewables.  And we’re lacking long-term price signals to support investment.”  

Dickson added: “We saw strong expansion in Germany in 2016 but growth remains uneven geographically. Over half the Member States invested nothing in wind energy last year. Policy is key, especially when we look at the longer term. The Member States also need to start defining in their National Energy and Climate Plans how they will deliver the transition at national level. The Clean Energy Package is the blueprint for this. The Council and the European Parliament need to start working seriously on the Commission’s proposals.”

Click here to download the full stats