【New Energy Applications】WWEA 2016 Half-Year Report: Global wind power capacity reaches 456 GW

Germany, India, and Brazil lead the global wind power market. The total cumulative installed capacity of the five major traditional wind power countries – China, the United States, Germany, India, and Spain – accounts for 67% of the global total. This represents a slight decline compared to 73% in the first half of 2013; these traditional markets are experiencing some contraction. The new wind power capacity added in these 5 countries accounts for 72% of the global total. Compared to Germany and China, which maintain strong growth, the market roles of the United States and Spain appear somewhat weaker. In the first half of 2016, four countries had an additional installed capacity of over 1GW: China with 10GW, Germany with 2.4GW, India with 2.4GW, and Brazil with 1.1GW. Among the top 10 countries in terms of new wind power capacity added in the first half of the world, following China, Germany, India, and Pakistan are the United States (830MW), France (568MW), Turkey (428MW), the United Kingdom (320MW), Sweden (309MW), and Poland (200MW). In the first half of the year, Brazil overtook Italy to become the ninth largest wind power market in the world.

Europe: Germany dominates while the UK’s share declines. In the first half of the year, Europe’s share of global installed capacity continued to drop to 33%. In Germany, France, and Italy, the amount of new capacity added remained the same as in the second half of 2015, whereas the UK saw a sharp decline, with its installed capacity falling from 872MW to 320MW. Germany remains the leader in wind power in Europe, with an additional 2.4 GW added, bringing its total installed capacity to 47.4 GW. Wind power growth is expected to reach record levels in the second half of 2016 and for the whole of that year, but a market decline is likely in the coming years due to Germany’s introduction of a new auction system in 2017. Spain and Portugal added 0 MW and 6 MW respectively.

Asia: China and India dominate the market. China added 10 GW of new wind power capacity in the first half of the year, roughly the same as last year, and remains the largest market in the world. The newly added wind power capacity accounts for 46% of the global market. India added 2.4 GW of new wind power capacity in the first half of the year, double the amount added in the first half of 2015. The wind power markets in Japan and South Korea are still growing slowly, with growth rates of 3.3% and 7.5% respectively. North America: The U.S. and Canadian markets are in a downturn. The U.S. wind power sector is facing difficulties; new installations reached a record 520 MW in the first quarter, but only 310 MW in the second quarter. In the first half of 2015, the total amount of new installations was 1991 MW. However, due to the extension of production tax credits at the end of 2015, 12.5 GW of wind power projects are under construction in the United States. Canada added 109 MW of new capacity in the first half of the year, which is only 20% of what was added in the first half of 2015. Latin America: Brazil stands out as the leader. Brazil, the largest wind power market in Latin America, added 1.1 GW of new capacity, bringing its total installed capacity to 9,810 MW, with a growth rate of 12.5%. Brazil is likely to maintain its position as a leader in the region, and is set to become the sixth-largest wind power market in the world by 2018. In the second half of 2016, global wind power capacity additions are expected to reach 40 GW, with total annual additions likely to amount to 65.5 GW – a increase of only 1.5 GW compared to 2015. The global cumulative installed capacity of wind power is expected to reach 500 GW by the end of 2016.