WindEurope Bulletin October 2024

A word from the CEO

Dear WindEurope member,

A few weeks ago we released mid-year wind energy stats for Europe. We built 6.4 GW in the first half of 2024. Turbine orders were up 11% on the same period last year. Auction volumes were also strong – 19.7 GW across the EU-27. And there was some good news on permitting: Germany alone issued 5 GW of new onshore wind permits in H1.

But other data was less good. Investments in new wind farms are down. Europe took €15.4bn of FIDs during H1 2024 – less than a third of the figure for H1 2023. And we aren’t building as many wind farms overall as we’d hoped. We now expect 15 GW of new wind farms in the EU this year, down from 16 GW last year.

Based on current trends and developments and the pipeline of projects we now expect to build 22 GW a year on average in the EU over 2024-30. And the EU to have 350 GW of wind by 2030. This is a major increase on today’s 225 GW but well below the 425 GW target the EU have set for 2030.

It’s no great mystery why we’re seeing this low buildout – and low rates of investment. The key bottleneck is the grid. We aren’t building enough grid connections to bring new wind farms online. The permitting needs to improve too – Governments need to apply the EU’s new rules here across the board. And we need concerted action to electrify industry, heating and transport. The stagnant level of electricity demand is suppressing power prices. There are growing instances of negative power prices. That’s undermining the revenue perspective for developers, which together with high input costs and (still) high interest rates is making it difficult to take FID on new projects.

Our priority now is to press these issues with the incoming European Commission and the new European Parliament – and to ensure they tackle them. We will have to work closely with Teresa Ribera, the proposed Executive Vice-President for the Clean, Just and Competitive Transition, and with Dan Jørgensen, who’s expected to take up the Energy portfolio. They and the rest of the new EU Commission are due to start their five-year mandate on 1 December – though they’ve all got to be approved by the European Parliament first.

The new EU Commission will be drawing heavily on the recommendations of Mario Draghi’s new report on European competitiveness. In it he’s rightly underlined the need for an energy transition – and what’s needed to get it over the line. And many of its points on grids, permitting, supply chains, finance and innovation are spot-on. You can read our reaction to the report here.

This is all part of a wider triple challenge the EU is now facing. In a rapidly changing world, Europe needs to switch gears and confront new realities. Geopolitical tensions – and their consequences on our energy supply. Europe’s declining competitiveness – and China’s threat to our tech leadership. And of course climate change – and the need for climate action. But one thing is crystal clear – wind energy can help on all three fronts. With the EU’s new incoming mandate, this is the message that we need to drive home – in Brussels, and in national capitals.

Finally a quick reminder that EoLIS, our annual workshop on the turbine end-of-life debate, is in Gothenburg from 4-5 December. There’ll be 15+ technical sessions over two days and a chance to meet 250+ turbine and sustainability experts from all over Europe. Do join us if you can – you can register here.

Kind regards,

Giles Dickson

WindEurope Intelligence Platform

Member webinar recording – Impact of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism

In this webinar, WindEurope, Penta Group, and EY present the findings of the first report looking at the impact of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) on the European wind energy sector.

Topics covered:

• Key trends and compliance-related challenges for the European wind energy sector.
• Analysis of the financial impact on the wind energy supply chain
• Strategic recommendations for businesses and policymakers.

Watch the webinar

Your guide to the WindEurope Members’ Area

As a WindEurope member, you have access to our extensive Members’ Area – available here on our website. You can use it to stay up-to-date on our advocacy reports, Working Group activities, marketing intelligence tools, or to look up other members’ contact details or check out proceedings from our past events – among other perks.

In this short video the WindEurope Membership Team take you through the Members’ Area, how to get started and how to make full use of your membership benefits.

Watch the video

Members’ Successes

Transforming Safety Culture in Offshore Wind: FidesOak® Tackles Safety Challenges Amid Rapid Growth

The offshore wind industry is expanding rapidly, and with it comes growing safety concerns. The 2023 G+ report revealed a 94% rise in global safety incidents, with 1,679 reported, compared to 867 in 2022. Research from the University of Strathclyde also highlighted that the offshore wind sector’s injury rate is four times higher than that of offshore oil and gas, emphasising the need for stronger safety measures.

In 2023, a wind turbine manufacturing company faced significant safety challenges as it grew from a small, privately-owned business, into a large global operation. While the company boasted impressive technical capabilities, it struggled with human factors in safety management. Despite employee commitment, there was a disconnect between leadership’s vision for safety and how it was practiced on the ground.

As the company’s operational demands grew, its focus shifted towards achieving technical success – prioritising “what was done” over “how it was done”. This created misalignments between leadership’s safety goals and daily practices, particularly during key project phases. Leadership recognised the need to address these issues and sought a solution to transform their safety culture.

FidesOak® was brought in to help reassess the organisation’s safety culture and implement changes that would have a lasting impact. Using the High Performing Team (HPT®) Model, FidesOak® focused on five key areas known to improve team and cultural performance: team cohesion, leadership, information sharing, vision/goal sharing, and psychological safety.

Key Interventions:

1. Diagnostic Assessment: FidesOak® conducted a thorough evaluation of two business units – one in Europe and one in Asia – using the HPT® Model to assess the company’s safety culture. This included workforce culture surveys, one-on-one interviews, and focus groups, to gain insights from all organisational levels. The findings were summarised in an HPT® Safety Culture dashboard.
2. Feedback and Recommendations: FidesOak® held feedback workshops with the company’s leadership and business units, presenting key findings, and offering actionable recommendations for improvement. It was noted that leadership behaviour, communication, and team dynamics, were key areas needing attention to close the gap between intended safety practices and on-the-ground realities.
3. Cultural Sensitivity and Global Engagement: Recognising the company’s global presence, FidesOak® ensured that all interventions were adapted to reflect cultural differences, ensuring engagement and buy-in from teams across different regions.

As the offshore wind industry continues to grow, the need for a strong safety culture becomes more urgent. FidesOak®’s work with this client shows that improving safety means more than looking for technical solutions, or new policies. A robust safety culture – driven by cohesive teams, empowered leadership, and open communication – ensures that safety is embedded across the whole organisation’s operations.

Find out more

Share your successes with us!

Is your brand bringing new, ground-breaking solutions to the wind industry? Have you recently launched a major project in your field? Do you have positive business news to share?

Then make sure to get in touch with us here at WindEurope – we’ll be happy to promote your success story as part of our monthly Bulletin! This is a chance to share your accomplishments with thousands of others from right across the wind energy value chain – a major visibility boost.

Please be aware that this service is only available to members from the categories C3 and above. Publication of stories is on a first come, first served basis.

Get in touch with our Membership team now to send in your news!

Send us your success story

Statkraft

This month, we spoke with Kevin O’Donovan, Senior Vice-President Europe and Managing Director of UK and Ireland at Statkraft, to talk about their move from a hydropower provider into other renewables across Europe, the need for strong policy frameworks on energy, and outstanding challenges in delivering wind energy buildout.

Read the interview