The US market recovered in 2014 from a dismal 2013, and looks set for at least another two strong years, as does Canada.
The Global Wind Energy Council recently launched its flagship publication the Global Wind Report: Annual Market update in Istanbul. The report details wind power’s remarkable growth in 2014, as well as updating GWEC’s rolling 5 year market projections, which show continued growth for the rest of the decade.
Led by China and Brazil in the first instance, as well as Mexico and South Africa, non-OECD markets outstripped the traditional markets in Europe and North America again in 2014. China installed an astonishing 23 GW of new wind power last year, bringing its cumulative total to more than 114 GW, and Brazil was the world’s 4th largest market in 2014, and entered the top 10 in cumulative rankings for the first time. The African market took off in 2014, and Germany, Chile, Canada and Turkey also had record years.
“Wind power’s growth is increasingly driven by its competitive pricing, as well as because it enhances energy security, price stability and (especially in China) through the need to address the choking smog that is increasingly making major urban areas in the developing world unliveable, said Steve Sawyer, GWEC Secretary General.
“The need for clean, sustainable indigenous power sources to fuel economic growth throughout Africa, Asia and Latin America is increasingly being met through wind power, and this will continue for the foreseeable future”.
The US market recovered in 2014 from a dismal 2013, and looks set for at least another two strong years, as does Canada. Germany’s record installations led an increasingly concentrated European market.
Looking ahead, GWEC expects the 2015 market to top 50 GW again in 2015, and reach 60 GW per year by 2018. Growth will continue to be led by China, which seems on track to meet its 200 GW well ahead of the government’s target of 2020; and the Indian market is expected to grow substantially in the years ahead. Latin America is becoming a strong regional market, led by Brazil, but with Mexico catching up quickly.
Africa installed nearly 1 GW in 2014 for the first time, and we expect it to pass that mark in 2015 and not look back. Led by South Africa, Egypt and Morocco, we look for a number of new markets to emerge in the coming years which will make Africa the fastest growing regional market, at least in percentage terms, in the coming years.
Europe is expected to remain relatively stable, and North America is the most difficult market to predict as policy vacuums loom in both the US and Canada in 2016 or thereafter.
“Looking ahead to the UN climate summit in Paris at the end of the year, we call on governments to wake up to the renewable energy revolution in the power sector, and set ambitious targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions”, concluded Sawyer.
Annexes
Cumulative market forecast by region 2014-2019
Annual market forecast by region 2014-2019
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