WindEurope Bulletin
WindEurope Bulletin January 2018
9 January 2018
Giles Dickson
CEO Foreword
Allow me to begin by wishing you all the best for the New Year.
At the end of November the WindEurope Board approved an 8-point work plan that will shape our activities for the coming year. I’d like to take this opportunity to take you through it.
First, we will strive to secure a positive outcome to the EU’s Clean Energy Package. We had some good news on this at December’s Energy Council meeting. Unlike the European Parliament Committees which supported raising the EU’s 2030 renewables target to 35%, EU Member States are sticking with 27% for now. But they did endorse the Commission’s proposals for detailed national energy plans and the requirement that they always give 3 years’ visibility on renewables support. This will improve visibility for our supply chain including chemicals, steel, construction and other sectors – every €1,000 invested in wind generates €250 value for them. The Ministers also agreed 3 dates for interim targets towards the 2030 EU target. This video gives you an update of what the Ministers agreed and where things stand overall on the Package.
Second, we will rebalance our communications and advocacy more towards the demand side. This means helping and encouraging energy consumers (household, commercial and industrial) to opt for renewables, including via the electrification of transport and heating.
Third, we need to push even more on long-term investment signals. We will work more with governments to get auction design right. We will continue to support the expansion of corporate renewable Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) throughout Europe. We will organise a second edition of the RE-Source event to further connect corporate buyers and renewable energy sellers/operators.
Revenue stabilisation through auctions and PPAs is key. And we need to think more broadly about how we can thrive in a more merchant environment. As part of this we’ll be pushing for further progress on carbon prices, both at EU and national level.
We’ll then be pushing for more flexible energy systems to integrate higher shares of variable renewables. For regulations that incentivise demand response services. For electricity markets more fit for renewables. We’ll continue to work closely with the EU Commission and TSOs on grid investments and network codes. We also need to make sure governments and other stakeholders understand it’s getting easier and cheaper to integrate variable renewables.
We’ll also be working to shape the development of the EU’s R&D priorities for 2021-27. We need to ensure R&D has a central place in the new EU Budget and that both onshore and offshore wind – and system integration – get high priority within that. This’ll be key to ensure our supply chain continues to thrive.
Our main event this year is the Global Wind Summit in Hamburg in September. Hamburg Messe are running the exhibition. We’re running the conference (this time inside the Messe) – as ever, it’ll be a top conference! We’re also doing a technology workshop on the analysis of operating wind farms in Vilnius in May. And a “Grid meets Renewables” conference in Brussels in February. Don’t forget, our events are more than events – all the learning, contacts and revenues they generate… we reinvest them in the Association’s advocacy and business intelligence work.
Finally, we’ll be vigorously communicating the economic benefits of wind, especially at local and regional level. With your help we’re developing a Regional Map that charts wind industry success stories across Europe. It’ll be an invaluable tool to illustrate the socio-economic impact of our supply chain and our wind farms. It’s in the final development stages – please tell us if you have a success story that’s missing before we launch it in the spring. All this work – plus our media outreach – aims to win over hearts and minds at a local and national level.
So those are our goals this year. As ever, we’ll need your support: at our Working Groups, at our events and through your own engagement with governments and other external stakeholders. Thank you for your support. We look forward to working with you.
Members’ successes
Vattenfall participates in non-subsidised offshore tender
Vattenfall has decided to participate in the offshore wind tender in the Dutch part of the North Sea, the first non-subsidised tender in the world. This is a major milestone for Vattenfall, and marks an important step towards becoming fossil-free within one generation.
Vattenfall is firmly committed to the green transition of Northern Europe, investing more than €2 billion in renewable energy between 2017 and 2018. Now, Vattenfall has decided to join the offshore tender ‘Hollandse Kust Zuid’, a project widely viewed as a significant milestone for the green transition of both the energy company and the Netherlands.
The North Sea, and in particular the Hollandse Kust Zuid site, has excellent wind conditions and offers significant synergies to Vattenfall’s nearby offshore windfarm Egmond aan Zee. In addition, the Dutch tender fits nicely with Vattenfall’s North Sea wind farm pipeline and can therefore easily be incorporated in the current procurement and execution strategy.
“We have been very thorough in making sure our business case is strong and we are well equipped to manage all risks,” says Gunnar Groebler, Head of Vattenfall’s Business Area Wind. “We believe that our proposal represents a very solid all-round proposition to meet the Dutch government’s needs. The country’s strong commitment to renewable energy creates a stable regulatory framework. Along with support in terms of providing the substation and grid connection, these are very important parts of Vattenfall’s decision to bid. ”
Vattenfall has considerable experience in offshore wind along the entire value chain: from development and installation to selling wind power to households and businesses. Recognised globally as one of the leading players in offshore, and with a strong track record in reducing costs in offshore projects, Vatenfall’s offshore portfolio consists of 21 North European offshore wind farms either in operation or under development.
New member Endiprev joins WindEurope
Based in Portugal, new WindEurope member Endiprev provides electrical engineering solutions that guarantee support for power generation and transformation. In particular, Endiprev provides technical services on wind turbines, both onshore and offshore. The company works very closely with OEMs, offering support in the three main lifecycle phases of a wind turbine: development, set up and operation. Working worldwide, Endiprev has a track record in more than 30 countries, with contracts for commissioning, maintenance and validation tests.
As wind power continues to grow and breaks records, Endiprev continues to keep pace and work at full throttle all over the world, with 2018 expected to be a landmark year both in terms of revenue and accumulated MW experience.
The final period of 2017 was particularly busy for Endiprev, winning two commissioning and maintenance contracts worth a combined 216 MW in offshore projects in Germany and China. These projects are totally aligned with the company’s strategy of maintaining steady growth across a wide variety of geographies. With these contracts, Endiprev is preparing the opening of its Chinese and German offices, which will join its offices in Portugal, Spain, Netherlands, Ethiopia and USA.
EU projects
An online simulator to train the wind energy technicians of the future: kick-off of the EU-funded project SIMULWIND
SIMULWIND is an ERASMUS + project that will kick-off on 30-31 January 2018 in Hamburg.
Over a lifespan of 2 years, the project will develop an online open access simulator to train and inform future technicians in the operation and maintenance (O&M) of European wind farms. The project will be based on the Open Educational Resources (OER) approach which will develop digital training materials available under a Creative Commons license. Used in combination with face-to-face and online training courses, the simulator will provide trainees with the main features of the operation and maintenance procedures of wind farms in real conditions, as well as with an approach to troubleshooting issues involving wind turbines.
Led by the BZEE ACADEMY GmbH (BZEE), a German wind energy training provider, the project gathers partners experienced in the development of training content and in the organisation of O&M courses: Asociacíon Empresarial Eólica (AEE), Associazione Nazionale Energia del Vento (ANEV), SGS TECNOS. WindEurope will also take part with the main role of disseminating the project results.
NER 300 Programme: new opportunities for the wind energy sector
The EU NER 300 Programme has now ended. NER 300 is the EU’s funding programme for innovative low-carbon technologies, notably financed by the sale of 300 million emission allowances of the EU emission trading scheme. Via two calls for proposals (2012 and 2014), the programme has provided €2.1 billion in co-funding to projects demonstrating innovative renewable energy (RES) technologies and environmentally safe carbon capture and storage (CCS) on a commercial-scale in the EU.
Risk is one of the most important factors preventing projects from finding financial investors. As such, public funding for green investments, such as the NER 300 programme, provide low-carbon technologies with financial support at a crucial stage of their development-commercialisation.
Out of the total 39 projects awarded by the programme, eight were focused on wind energy. The combined budget of these wind projects is over €340 million. The fund has focused on offshore technology, with six of the eight wind projects dedicated to offshore technology. Among the offshore projects, floating turbine technology was the major focus, while onshore projects saw wind turbines installed in extreme climates (high mountainous areas in Austria and extreme cold in Sweden).
In particular, 3 projects started operation in 2017:
- An onshore wind project in Austria – Windpark Handalm – consisting of 13 windmills at an average altitude of 1,800 metres, will produce around 76 MW hours of electricity a year, while showcasing a range of innovative technologies designed specifically for the high-altitude location.
- Two offshore wind projects in Germany – Nordsee One and Veja Mate – both situated in the North Sea with respective capacities of 332 MW and 402 MW. Both wind parks use 6 MW wind turbines on large monopole foundations and have their own substations.
Due to different reasons, ranging from unfavourable market conditions to insufficient technology readiness, some projects have been withdrawn. Consequently, the European Commission will reinvest approximately €450 million through two loan facilities: the InnovFin Energy Demonstration Projects (EDP) and the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) Debt Instrument. InnovFin EDP finances projects in innovative renewable energy, carbon capture and storage (CCS) and smart energy systems, while CEF Debt funds innovative projects which enable the use of renewables in transportation. More information on this funding is expected later in 2018.
Events
Global Wind Summit 2018
When: 25 – 28 September 2018
Where: Hamburg
Take part in the development of the world’s biggest wind energy event
The leading German trade fair organisers – Hamburg Messe und Congress – and the most prominent European association – WindEurope – have joined forces to create the Global Wind Summit, the exceptional business, networking and educational gathering for the entire wind energy industry.
Over 35,000 people will attend the largest wind event in the world.
- High-level conference sessions: Focus on the trends and outlook for the wind industry, market developments and finance issues.
- Technical sessions and workshops: Cover the latest developments in wind energy technology, system integration and sector coupling.
- Special focus: Offshore wind, end-of-life issues and digitalisation in wind and beyond.
There are two ways you can help shape the conference programme:
1. Submit an abstract
January 17 – April 4 2018
We are looking for:
- general abstracts from authors/organisations who would like to present their work at the conference and let other participants learn from their expertise.
- scientific abstracts from authors/organisations who would like to present their work at the conference and have it published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.
Topics covered:
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2. Abstract review process
9 April – 2 May 2018
WindEurope members and the European Academy of Wind Energy (EAWE) peer review abstracts in their field of expertise. If you are a member of WindEurope and would like to take part in the review, email [email protected] by 1 March.
Note: an application form will be available as of 17 January in the Members’ Area of WindEurope’s website.
WindEurope will publish the final programme schedule and invite those selected to give oral and poster presentations in late May / early June.
Webinar: European Offshore Wind Industry – Key Trends and Statistics 2017
When: 7 February 2018
Where: Online
Following the publication of our offshore statistics on February 6, we will host a webinar on February 7 discussing the latest developments within the offshore wind industry, outlining key construction and financing highlights.
Join us for the full review of what has been a very productive year for the industry, including some analysis on the exciting results from recent tenders. This will be followed by a Q&A session.
Webinar: Wind in Power – 2017 European Statistics
When: 14 February 2018
Where: Online
Following the publication of our 2017 European Statistics on 13 February, we will host a webinar on 14 February discussing the latest developments within the European wind industry, on- and offshore, outlining key installation and financing highlights.
This will be followed by a Q&A session.
Grids meet Renewables – Conference and Best Practice Fair
When: 20 February 2018
Where: Brussels
Renewables Grid Initiative and WindEurope are organizing the event ‘Grids meet Renewables’ in February. This event will facilitate an open dialogue between the renewables and grid sectors and deep dive into the opportunities and challenges presented by the energy transition.
Wind Energy 2030 Workshop
When: 21 February 2018
Where: Brussels
In the last few years the wind energy sector has transformed from a niche technology into a major EU industrial sector. Continuous Research and Innovation (R&I) was one of the key drivers in that process, with the industry spending some 5% of their turnover on R&I. This is well above the EU average of 2%, demonstrating the sector’s commitment to innovation.
Industry efforts, coupled with targeted EU support, have made the EU the global leader in wind energy technology. Still, an EU-wide approach to research and development will be needed for the EU to retain its leading position in the next decade – even more so in light of increasing competition from Asia and the US on the global market.
The time has come for us to design a vision of where we are heading as a sector.
To this end, ETIPWind is hosting a workshop to formulate a design for where the wind energy sector will be by 2030. The aim of the workshop is to establish a long term R&I perspective and to identify the key challenges and opportunities ahead. This will help us to secure EU support on topics vital to the development of the sector. The workshop will also be an occasion to identify new opportunities for the sector to ensure Europe remains a global leader in wind energy technology.
Click on the button below to register for the workshop on 21 February and share your 2030 vision!
(Please note, there is a limited number of places available: early registration is advised)
WindEurope Conference & Exhibition 2019
When: 2 – 4 April 2019
Where: Bilbao, Spain
The 2019 WindEurope Conference & Exhibition in Bilbao will build on the tremendous momentum achieved in recent years by wind power. Over 8,000 industry insiders and more than 400 exhibitors will gather to expand their knowledge base, make the contacts they need, and shape the vision for the industry going forward.
Analysis of Operating Wind Farms – Technology Workshop
When: 15 – 16 May 2018
Where: Vilnius, Lithuania
The 2018 edition of Analysis of Operating Wind Farms Technology Workshop will focus on big data and innovative approaches to boost performance and optimise O&M strategies.
