In the Spotlight
Featuring latest topics & on the spot reporting from our experts on issues impacting the wind industry and markets across the world.
More than 97% of articles published in the peer reviewed literature supported the notion that human activity is causing climate change
The notion in the media (and hence, in public opinion) that there is a ‘scientific debate’ about whether or not human activity is changing the climate reminds me of an old campaign poster from Canada: “14% of Canadians ...
WindMade, the first global consumer label for companies using wind energy, launched the proposed WindMade Standard for Products and Services, setting out the technical requirements for the label to be used on individual products.
This draft will now enter a one-month public consultation period. The introduction of the WindMade Product Label has been eagerly awaited by market participants, ...
Either governments are not serious about climate change or fossil-fuel firms are overvalued
“Sometimes I despair about ever making any progress on the climate issue. But when a formerly skeptical and very hard-nosed publication like the Economist comes up with an editorial like this, it seems we may have some hope after all. Many have been making ...
17/04/2013 -
Wind power surges to new record
Brussels, 17 April 2013
The Global Wind Energy Council released its Annual Market Update today, with a comprehensive snapshot of the global wind industry at the end of 2012, along with a 5-year forecast out to 2017. Although policy uncertainty in the main OECD markets is a cause for concern, strong markets in China, India and ...
MEDIA INVITATION: Press conference
Wednesday 17 April, 9:00-10:15
Passage room, Résidence Palace - International Press Centre, Rue de la Loi 155 C, Brussels
Current state of play of global wind industry and a five-year projection for the future
Where is the global industry headed? What are the prospects up to 2017? The EU needs to more than double its installed wind power ...Globally, subsidies should be evened out and made completely transparent
Steve Sawyer interviewed by Eric Frykburg
At a Wind Energy Conference in Wellington, New Zealand, Steve Sawyer, Secretary General of GWEC, says governments tell people not to emit greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2), but the subsidies they pay to fossil fuels such as oil more than cancel this out. These ...
The government is aiming to set up a private-public partnership (PPP) to install about 500 turbines off the country’s West coast. Under the PPP, 100 MW of wind projects should be operational by 2013, a further 900 MW by 2016 and the final 1.5 GW by 2016. In addition, local governments are promoting another 4.5 GW of offshore wind projects ...
Japan implemented a new feed-in tariff (FIT) system in July 2012. The FIT prices are re-estimated annually by the Ministry for Economy, Trade and Industry and METI’s cost estimation committee held its 3rd meeting on Tuesday this week defining new purchasing prices for the 2013 fiscal year. While the price for wind power remains unchanged, the price paid for solar ...
EWEA's Special statement on the European energy uncertainty crisis
The financial and economic crisis has provoked a wave of uncertainty across the European Union since 2010, with national Governments making damaging retroactive changes to policies and regulations for wind energy. This political uncertainty is deterring financiers and investors and has already caused job losses and negative financial result announcements.
The ...
Generation Based Incentive reintroduced for wind in India
“We are happy that wind energy sector has been recognized as a significant contributor to the power scenario of the country in the Budget 2013 proposals announced by the Union Finance Minister, Mr.P. Chidambaram”, said Mr. Ramesh Kymal, Chairman, Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers’ Association (IWTMA).
“The re-introduction of Generation Based ...
Steve Sawyer on wind development in Latin America, Inter-American Dialogue’s Latin America Advisor:
“If methane and carbon dioxide emissions were priced in any meaningful way rather than heavily subsidized, then 'non-conventional' oil and gas would be far from cheap and renewables could easily compete in more markets. Even in that heavily subsidized nvironment, however, the position of ...
12/02/2013 -
China, US vie for market leader position at just over 13 GW of new capacity each
Brussels, 12 February 2013
The Global Wind Energy Council released its 2012 market statistics today, showing continued expansion of the market, with annual market growth of almost 10%, and cumulative capacity growth of about 19%. A record year for US installations and ...
05/02/2013 -
Without stable legislation, investments will dry up
Language versions: DE, FR, PL, RU, RO, BG, ITBrussels, 5 February 2013
Wind power in Central and Eastern Europe will become a significant source of electricity production by 2020 and Turkey’s wind power generation capacity will grow even faster - provided there is a stable legal framework in each country.
The European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) today ...
04/03/2013 -
Brussels, 4 February 2013
The wind industry is being hit by the economic crisis and austerity across Europe, and a difficult situation should not be made worse by politicians undermining investor confidence, warned top industry figures today in Vienna.
At the opening of Europe's leading wind energy event - EWEA 2013 - politicians and high level industry representatives also spoke of the ...
4Q numbers show 2012 was best year ever, as industry reached 60,000 MW; Texas, California, Kansas, Oklahoma, Illinois are leaders
WASHINGTON, D.C., January 30, 2013 – The U.S. wind energy industry had its strongest year ever in 2012, the American Wind Energy Association announced today, installing a record 13,124 megawatts (MW) of electric generating capacity, leveraging $25 ...
Europe installed and grid connected 293 offshore wind turbines in 2012 - more than one per working day. This brings the total to 1,662 turbines, in 55 offshore wind farms in ten European countries.
The 293 turbines installed in 2012 represent 1,165 Megawatts (MW), an increase of 33% compared to 2011 installations of 874 MW. ...
New GWEC/IRENA report presents a palette of key success factors for wind power development and discusses lessons from 12 mature wind markets
Abu Dhabi, 15 January 2013. A new report released today by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) shows a set of conditions that must be fulfilled in order to best harness ...
19/12/2012 -
Ethical Corporation Magazine
More commitment to wind power could mean hitting global emission targets. But it’s looking unlikely.
Unless market correction such as efficient carbon pricing and removal of fossil fuel subsidies are made now, the current opportunity to contain global warming will be missed, according to IEA projections.
However, governments continue to back the wrong horse. Subsidies to fossil fuels are now ...
07/12/2012 -
COP18 Climate Change THE NEW ECONOMY
For most of the last two decades, frustrated climate campaigners have been saying that “the climate is changing faster than the pace of the climate negotiations”, or words to that effect. While we all hoped that that was not really true and that it would spur governments into action, it is ...
WindMade welcomes more renewables
Supported by UN Global Compact, WWF, GWEC and Vestas, WindMade announces development of new renewable energy label to recognize a wide variety of renewable energy sources
Doha, 4 December 2012. The WindMade organisation announced today the development of a new consumer label for companies and products made using renewable energy. This will be backed by the ...
GWEC Chairman Dr Klaus Rave was awarded for his Life-long work for the promotion of renewable energy at the German Renewables 2012 conference in Hamburg on 22 November.
The decision of the jury was based on Rave’s “decades of outstanding professional and volunteer work to make renewable energy as a mainstream energy source in the German and European energy supplies.”
Dr ...
Hon. Minister of New and Renewable Energy Farooq Abdullah at the launch of India Wind Energy Outlook
At Wind Power India on 28 November 2012 in Chennai
Farooq Abdullah, Minister for New and Renewable Energy, Steve Sawyer, GWEC Secretary General and Ramesh Kymal, Chairperson of Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association at the release of India Wind Energy Outlook 2012, at the inaugural session of Wind Power India 2012, in Chennai on Wednesday. (©The Hindu ...
Press Conference
28 November 2012, 3:00pm at Wind Power India, Chennai Trade Centre
What are the projections for wind power development in India up to 2030? What are the key drivers, challenges and bottlenecks in the Indian market? What’s the role for offshore wind in India?
The Indian Wind Energy Outlook provides an in-depth analyses of the current status ...
New Global Wind Energy Outlook released today
Beijing, 14 November. Greenpeace International and the Global Wind Energy Council released their bi-annual report on the future of the wind industry in Beijing today. The fourth edition of the Global Wind Energy Outlook shows that wind power could supply up to 12% of global electricity by 2020, creating 1.4 million new jobs and ...
Press Conference
14 November 2012, 10:00-11:30 at Kempiski Hotel, Room: Kaifeng, Beijing (50, Liangmaqiao Road, Chaoyang District, 100125 Beijing)
How will the wind industry look in 2020, 2030 and beyond? How much of the global electricity demand will it cover? How much CO² will be saved by wind power? How many people will be ...
The REIPPP will be extended into a rolling procurement programme with an additional allocation of 1,470 MW for onshore wind by 2020
South African Department of Energy has announced that the South African Treasury has signed off on the PPAs for the first round wind projects (630 MW). Following several delays, the government ...
29/10/2012 -
Steve Sawyer in the Economist Global Energy Conversation
Due to both technology improvements and market forces, wind equipment costs have come down significantly in the past few years. This is making wind farms cost-competitive and allowing them to compete for market share against subsidised incumbents. Offshore wind is, in development terms, where onshore wind was 15 years ago – as it ...
GWEC at Windaba, Cape Town
“Ten, five years ago everybody said renewables are just too expensive. . . Every situation is different but on the whole, as a general statement, that is just no longer true. And that not only goes for wind but it also goes for solar [photovoltaic] and we have to combat that at ...
New report 'Americans’ Global Warming Beliefs & Attitudes' released by the Yale University
Americans’ belief in the reality of global warming has increased by 13 percentage points over the past two and a half years, from 57 percent in January 2010 to 70 percent in September 2012. At the same time, the number of Americans who say ...
Clean wind energy grows by nearly 20% in Canada in 2012; Industry injects over $2.5 billion, creates 10,500 jobs
CanWEA expects new wind energy projects to add almost 1,200 MW of clean energy by the close of 2012. This will mark the second consecutive year with well over 1,000 MW of newly installed capacity, maintaining Canada's position ...
Retrospectively, the China Wind Energy Outlook 2012 estimates that in 2011 71.5 billion kilowatt hours were generated by wind in China, making up 1.5% of the national total electricity output and reducing CO2 emissions by about 70 million tons.
The China Wind Energy Outlook 2012 is the fourth edition in the series, following the 2007, 2008 and 2010 editions jointly ...
First review of the Russian wind energy market was recently published by RAWI
Russia has huge potential for developing renewable energy. However, until now, nothing much has happened, primarily due to the vast reserves of conventional energy resources, such as gas, coal and oil – in addition to lack of political interest and of legislative framework to support renewable ...
IEA-organised workshop explores speeding renewables deployment in the Mediterranean
The International Energy Agency organised a workshop on 3 October in Rome that explored the vast potential for renewable energy in the Mediterranean region, in particular solar and wind technologies, and how countries can harness it.
About 100 people attended “From Mediterranean Plans to Renewable Energy Power Plants”. The workshop was ...
Bloomberg is the first news organization in the world to receive the WindMade certification label for its U.S. operations.
WindMade is a global consumer label for companies that use wind energy and other renewables, backed by UN Global Compact and conservation group WWF. It requires participating companies to obtain at least 25% of their electricity from wind power. Bloomberg's U.S. operations, ...
Minister Abdullah will discuss the importance of the wind industry in India, highlight the rapid growth in 2011 and 2012, and give insight into policies that will help continue this growth.
Register today to attend the largest wind power conference in India!
More information at http://www.windpowerindia.in
GWEC at Husum
“30,000+ people jammed into 8 huge tents plus various Congress buildings where more than 1200 exhibitors at the bi-ennial Husum wind energy fair on Schleswieg-Holstein’s North Sea coast. Unlike most conference venues, most of the surrounding scenery consists of farms, cows, horses, donkeys sheep and 1300 wind turbines of various sizes ...
China Wind Energy Outlook, jointly released by the Chinese Renewable Energy Industries Association, the Global Wind Energy Council and Greenpeace, forecast that China's wind power sector will maintain the steady growth momentum seen last ...
Overview
In 2011, China led the global wind power market again, by adding 17.63 GW of new wind capacity, equivalent to 43% of the global annual market. While the US showed slow recovery from the downturn in 2010 by adding 6.8 GW, China cemented its place as the world’s leading wind market with a total installed capacity of 62,364.2 MW.
At the ...
Twenty-one years have passed since the world’s first offshore wind farm, Vindeby (5MW), was built in Denmark. Today, 4,620 MW[1] of offshore wind power has been installed globally, representing about 2% of total installed wind power capacity. More than 90% of it is installed off northern Europe, in the North, Baltic and Irish Seas, and the English Channel. Most of ...
Press Conference
The Way Forward for the Brazilian Wind Market
30 August 2012, 12:30 Espaço SulAmerica, Sala de Imprensa
Brazil’s wind power industry has grown dramatically over the past few years. Does the current system of energy auctions meet the needs of the market? What are the key obstacles? How can we overcome them, and what needs to be done to ensure ...
The Spanish wind industry is fighting for its life
The Spanish wind industry is fighting for its life. Just a few months ago, the government let the support scheme for the industry lapse, citing the economic crisis and falling electricity demand. Now, the government is contemplating a discriminatory tax on wind energy, much higher than for other forms ...
Joint statement by global wind industry
In response to a proposed national study by Health Canada on wind turbine sound and human health, the American, Australian, Canadian, European, Global and United Kingdom wind energy industry associations point to seventeen reviews of independent research and evidence that all conclude wind is not harmful to human health. According to ...
