Wind sector set to add enough capacity to power Britain each year
The world is set to add enough wind turbines to more than power Britain’s at peak demand each year, new analysis shows.
Consultancy Wood Mackenzie today said that global wind producers are expected to bring 71 gigawatts (GW) of capacity online each year until 2023.
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This would be more than enough to power Britain, where peak demand reaches just under 60 GW.
The figure is then set to hit 76 GW from 2024 to 2028, Wood Mackenzie said.
The new forecast is a 1.5 per cent increase from the consultancy’s previous estimates. It would add around 60 per cent new capacity to the world’s wind generation.
The boost was helped by an increase in some parts of Europe, said Luke Lewandowski, Wood Mackenzie Power and Renewables director.
“Northern Europe has been upgraded in our forecast by six per cent. This should offset an otherwise dismal outlook update in Europe, as the other sub-regions combine for a 2.2GW downgrade,” he said.
Meanwhile the US market was upgraded by 16 per cent quarter-on-quarter as it is set to bring 3.8 GW online in 2021.
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It comes as tax credits are phasing out. Producers are trying to get their capacity online before benefits disappear entirely.
Wind farms which start construction after the end of December will get no tax credits.
Main image credit: Getty