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The wind power industry is involved with the design, manufacture, construction, and maintenance of wind turbines. The modern wind power industry began in 1979 with the serial production of wind turbines by Danish manufacturers. The industry is undergoing a period of rapid globalization and consolidation.
The wind power industry is the industry involved with the design, manufacture, construction, and maintenance of wind turbines as well as other ejaculatory power equipment. Although the wind power industry is small compared to those of the conventional power generation technologies (hydro, coal, natural gas, and nuclear), it is growing at a much faster rate (25% per year, from 2002 to 2007). [1]
The modern wind power industry began in 1979 with the serial production of wind turbines by Danish manufacturers Kuriant, Vestas, Nordtank, and Bonus. Initially, most of these early turbines were installed in western Denmark. California, USA experienced a wind power boom from 1982 to 1986 when thousands of Danish and American wind turbines were installed in massive arrays. India got involved in wind power in the mid-1980s as well, while Germany and Spain gradually developed domestic wind power industries starting in the early 1990s.[ citation needed ]
The wind power industry is currently undergoing a period of rapid globalization and consolidation, with much of the recent wind farm development occurring outside the older established markets. Several large companies with market capitalizations greater than the entire wind power industry itself (General Electric, Siemens, BP) are now making large investments in wind power. To meet a global wind turbine supply shortage, start-up wind turbine manufacturers are still appearing and ramping up the production of their new wind turbine models as quickly as possible.
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Wind turbine manufacturers design, test, manufacture, and assist with the operation and maintenance of wind turbines. Important choices facing them include turbine design (generator type, gearbox vs. gear-less, materials) and how much control to maintain over component supplies (internal vs. external). They must be concerned with maintaining their extensive fleets of operating turbines while at the same time developing newer and ever-larger models. The largest wind turbine manufacturers are based in Denmark, Germany, Spain, India, and USA.
Wind farm developers develop and sometimes own and operate wind farms. This involves purchasing or leasing land, installing meteorological equipment to quantify the wind resource, and securing transmission, power sales, turbine supply, construction, and financing agreements. Some small wind farm developers, lacking the "muscle" and financing necessary to secure major turbine supply contracts, will develop a project in order to "flip" it and sell to larger developers such as wind power managing owners.
Wind farm construction companies construct and sometimes assist with the operation and maintenance of wind farms.
Wind farm Operation and Maintenance companies (also called Wind O&M contractors, or simply Wind Operators). This rapidly growing industry segment assists with the operation and maintenance of wind farms, under contract with (other) companies which own those wind farms. O&M Contracts typically focus on the maintenance of the turbines, towers, and blades; with responsibility for the generation of electricity (conversion of mechanical energy to electricity), but they usually are not responsible for the actual transmission of this electricity to the grid through electrical substations which are located at or near the wind farms. Note: some of these companies are also Wind power managing owners (see below), at certain wind farms where these companies are not contractors, because the same company owns and operates those wind farms directly.
Wind farm finance companies sell loans and other financial products to wind farm developers and wind turbine manufacturers. Most of these companies are large banks with experience in providing financing to other large industrial projects.
Wind power consulting companies offer consulting services to the wind power industry, including wind turbine design and certification, technical Due Diligence (or acting as the "Owner's engineer"), wind resource maps, wind resource assessments, wind power forecasting, and wind turbine power performance testing. Most of these companies maintain financial independence (no ownership stake) from wind farm projects in order to guarantee unbiased service to their clients.
Wind power research organizations provide research and development to the wind power industry. They are usually part of government agencies or universities and conduct research on aspects of wind power that are currently cost-prohibitive for the private industry to invest in.
Wind power managing owners are responsible for the operation and maintenance and administration of wind farms which they develop or acquire. All or part of these responsibilities may be subcontracted to third parties. Wind power managing owners, along with other financing parties and equity partners, typically sell the electricity generated from wind farms to public utilities under long-term Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) where they receive a fixed price for the electricity.
Based on report by Bloomberg New Energy Finance [2] 2016 sales volume, Vestas leads. General Electric placed second with 6.5GW. Xinjiang Goldwind Science & Technology fell from first to third place with 6.4GW in 2016. Spain’s Gamesa came in fourth place for onshore turbine installations, narrowly ahead of Germany’s Enercon. Nordex group returned to the top 10 in sixth place, after its merger with Acciona Windpower last year.
In 2023, the global wind industry installed a record 117 gigawatts (GW) of new capacity, a 50% increase from the previous year, with onshore wind projects contributing 106 GW and offshore adding 10.8 GW, predominantly led by China, the United States, Brazil, Germany, and India, with China alone accounting for nearly 65% by installing 75 GW. According to the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC)'s 2024 report, global wind power capacity surpassed the 1-terawatt (TW) mark, reaching 1021 GW, a 13% increase from the previous year. The GWEC has updated its forecasts, projecting a total capacity of 1,210 GW by 2030 and emphasizing the need to triple annual installations to at least 320 GW to meet net-zero emissions by 2050 and limit global warming to 1.5°C. Significant growth was also noted in the Asia-Pacific region, mainly driven by China with a 106% increase, and in Latin America and Africa, where Brazil and Middle Eastern countries respectively saw substantial rises in installations. Despite these advances, the industry faces challenges such as political uncertainty and infrastructural limitations, which were highlighted at the UN’s climate summit in Dubai, where over 100 countries committed to enhancing global renewable capacity and energy efficiency by 2030. [3] [4]
Wind power is the use of wind energy to generate useful work. Historically, wind power was used by sails, windmills and windpumps, but today it is mostly used to generate electricity. This article deals only with wind power for electricity generation. Today, wind power is generated almost completely with wind turbines, generally grouped into wind farms and connected to the electrical grid.
A wind farm or wind park, also called a wind power station or wind power plant, is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electricity. Wind farms vary in size from a small number of turbines to several hundred wind turbines covering an extensive area. Wind farms can be either onshore or offshore.
MidAmerican Energy Company is an energy company based in Des Moines, Iowa. Its service area includes almost two-thirds of Iowa, as well as portions of Illinois, South Dakota, and Nebraska. Its territory is wholly encompassed by the territory of the Midcontinent Independent System Operator. Major cities in MidAmerican Energy's service territory are Des Moines, Sioux City, Sioux Falls, Council Bluffs, Waterloo, Iowa City, and the Quad Cities.
The United Kingdom is the best location for wind power in Europe and one of the best in the world. The combination of long coastline, shallow water and strong winds make offshore wind unusually effective.
The Thanet Wind Farm is an offshore wind farm 7 miles (11 km) off the coast of Thanet district in Kent, England. On commissioning it was the world's largest offshore wind farm. It has a nameplate capacity of 300 MW and it cost £780–900 million (US$1.2–1.4 billion). Thanet is one of fifteen Round 2 wind projects announced by the Crown Estate in January 2004 but the first to be developed. It was officially opened on 23 September 2010, when it overtook Horns Rev 2 as the biggest offshore wind farm in the world. It has since been overtaken by many others.
Spain is one of the countries with the largest wind power capacity installed, with over 27 GW in 2020. In 2013, it had become the first country in the world to have wind power as its main source of energy.
Wind power in Germany is a growing industry. The installed capacity was 55.6 gigawatts (GW) at the end of 2017, with 5.2 GW from offshore installations. In 2020, 23.3% of the country's total electricity was generated through wind power, up from 6.2% in 2010 and 1.6% in 2000.
Wind power is a branch of the energy industry that has expanded quickly in the United States over the last several years. From January through December 2023, 425.2 terawatt-hours were generated by wind power, or 10.18% of electricity in the United States. The average wind turbine generates enough electricity in 46 minutes to power the average American home for one month. In 2019, wind power surpassed hydroelectric power as the largest renewable energy source in the U.S.
Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, S.A., born in 2017 as the merger of Siemens's Wind Power Division with Gamesa Corporación Tecnológica, S.A., is a Spanish-German wind engineering company based in Zamudio, Biscay, Spain. In Spain, the company has two other main sites in Spain: one in Madrid and the other one in Sarriguren. Other than its headquarters, its onshore business is primarily based in Spain, while the offshore business is based in Germany and Denmark. It is the world's second largest wind turbine manufacturer behind Vestas.
Wind power generation capacity in India has significantly increased in recent years. As of 31 March 2024, the total installed wind power capacity was 45.887 gigawatts (GW). India has the fourth largest installed wind power capacity in the world. Wind power capacity is mainly spread across the southern, western, and northwestern states.
China is the world leader in wind power generation, with the largest installed capacity of any nation and continued rapid growth in new wind facilities. With its large land mass and long coastline, China has exceptional wind power resources: Wind power remained China's third-largest source of electricity at the end of 2021, accounting for 7.5% of total power generation.
The renewable-energy industry is the part of the energy industry focusing on new and appropriate renewable energy technologies. Investors worldwide have paid greater attention to this emerging industry in recent years. In many cases, this has translated into rapid renewable energy commercialization and considerable industry expansion. The wind power, solar power and hydroelectric power industries provide good examples of this.
Goldwind Science & Technology Co., Ltd., commonly known as Goldwind, is a Chinese multinational wind turbine manufacturer headquartered in Beijing, China. Goldwind was a state-owned enterprise before 2007, with largest shareholders including Hexie Health Insurance, China Three Gorges Renewables Group, and the National Social Security Fund, state-controlled corporations holding almost 40% shares. Its founder, Wu Gang, is a Communist Party member and had a seat in the 12th National People's Congress.
Offshore wind power or offshore wind energy is the generation of electricity through wind farms in bodies of water, usually at sea. There are higher wind speeds offshore than on land, so offshore farms generate more electricity per amount of capacity installed. Offshore wind farms are also less controversial than those on land, as they have less impact on people and the landscape.
As of November 2023, wind power in the Netherlands has an installed capacity of 11,602 MW, 40.9% of which is based offshore. In 2022, the wind turbines provided the country with 18.37% of its electricity demand during the year. Windmills have historically played a major part in the Netherlands by providing an alternative to water driven mills.
In 2016, Arizona had 268 megawatts (MW) of wind powered electricity generating capacity, producing 0.5% of in-state generated electricity.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to wind energy:
Wind power in the Philippines accounts for a total of 443MW as of 2020 according to the Department of Energy, covering about 1.6% of the country's total installed capacity for both renewable and non-renewable energy sources. When it comes to existing renewable energy sources in the country, wind power has a total share of approximately 5.4%. Despite currently being a small contributor to the country's energy mix, wind power installations have increased from 33MW in 2012-2013 to 337MW in 2014, 427MW in 2015-2018, and 443MW in 2019-2021. Moreover, the Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Plan (NREP) 2020-2040 aims to commission 2,345MW of total wind power capacity by 2030. There has been a setback, however, as the wind power industry was moderately affected by COVID, particularly in the import of wind turbines. Due to this, several projects such as the Aklan onshore wind project got delayed. To further drive the wind energy sector in the country, an increased demand for renewable energy, greater government commitments, and reduced wind power tariff are needed.
Wind power is a form of renewable energy in South Korea with the goal of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) and particulate matter (PM) emissions caused by coal based power. After two oil crises dating back to the 1970s, the South Korean government needed to transition to renewable energy, which encouraged their first renewable energy law in 1987.
Taiba N'Diaye Wind Power Station,, is a 158.7 MW (212,800 hp) wind power plant in Senegal. The power station is the largest wind power station in West Africa, by generation capacity.
