Wind energy growth in 2021 - more efforts needed
Source: IEA.org
In 2021 wind electricity generation increased by a record 273 TWh (up 17%). This was 55% higher growth than that achieved in 2020 and was the highest among all renewable power technologies. Such rapid development was possible thanks to an unprecedented increase in wind capacity additions, which reached 113 GW in 2020, compared with just 59 GW in 2019. However, to get on track with the Net Zero Emissions by 2050 Scenario, which has approximately 7 900 TWh of wind electricity generation in 2030, it is necessary to raise average annual capacity additions to almost 250 GW, more than double 2020’s record growth. Much greater efforts are needed to achieve this level of sustained capacity growth, with the most important areas for improvement being facilitating permitting for onshore wind and cost reductions for offshore wind.
Wind generation increased by a record amount in 2021, but even faster growth is needed to get on the Net Zero Scenario trajectory
The amount of electricity generated by wind increased by almost 273 TWh in 2021 (up 17%), 45% higher growth than that achieved in 2020 and the largest of all power generation technologies. Wind remains the leading non-hydro renewable technology, generating 1 870 TWh in 2021, almost as much as all the others combined.
China was responsible for almost 70% of wind generation growth in 2021, followed by the United States at 14% and Brazil at 7%. The European Union, despite near-record capacity growth in 2020 and 2021, saw wind power generation fall by 3% in 2021 due to unusually long periods of low wind conditions. Globally, record generation growth was possible thanks to a 90% increase in capacity growth in 2020, which reached 113 GW, driven by policy deadlines in China and the United States. In 2021 however, wind additions decreased by one-third in China and by a quarter in the United States, partially offset by faster growth in other parts of the world, resulting in overall capacity growth reaching 94 GW.
Aligning with the Net Zero Scenario’s wind power generation level of about 7 900 TWh in 2030 calls for average expansion of approximately 18% per year during 2022-2030. After the exceptionally high capacity additions of 2020-2021, the deployment is expected to stabilize in the coming years, highlighting the need for strong efforts to get on the Net Zero Scenario trajectory.
Onshore technology continues to dominate wind capacity growth, but offshore is expected to increase its share in the coming years
In 2021, of the total 830 GW of wind capacity installed, 93% were onshore systems, with the remaining 7% offshore wind farms. Onshore wind is a developed technology, present in 115 countries around the world, while offshore wind is at the early stage of expansion, with capacity present in just 19 countries. However, offshore reach is expected to increase in the coming years as more countries are developing or planning to develop their first offshore wind farms.
About 22% of total wind capacity growth of 94 GW was delivered by offshore technology in 2021, the highest in history and three times the average of the previous five years. Such a high share resulted from a combination of record offshore capacity additions in China, which was responsible for 80% of offshore growth, and a slowdown in global onshore growth. While the rate of onshore wind capacity additions is expected to remain stable in the coming years, offshore systems are set to further accelerate in their existing markets, such as the European Union and China, as well as enter new countries such as the United States, Chinese Taipei and Japan.
Reaching annual wind electricity generation of about 8 000 TWh in 2030, as foreseen under the Net Zero Scenario, will require increased support for both onshore and offshore farms. Efforts should be focused on facilitating permitting, supporting the identification of suitable sites, decreasing costs and reducing project development timelines.
IEA (2022), Wind Electricity, IEA, Paris