Two new projects to increase wind power capacity in Northern Europe

New commitments in Belgium and Denmark aim to greatly increase wind power capacity in Northern Europe, as part of broader strategies to move towards renewables.

The process of increasing wind power capacity in Northern Europe has been underway for a number of years, with both onshore and offshore projects expanding capabilities in many member states. Installations of wind power capacity infrastructure broke records in 2017 and already this year, the Netherlands has offered a tender for the world’s first subsidy-free wind farm, Bosnia’s first wind farm has begun generating electricity.

What has Belgium done to support wind power?

Belgium already has four offshore wind farms, which currently produce 871MW of power per year, but in its efforts to transition away from fossil fuels and expand its use of renewables, the country recently announced plans to more than double this capacity in the next two years.

This would mean 2.2GW of power would be available from 2020, after which Belgium would designate a 221km² area near French waters with the aim of increasing capacity to 4GW of power by 2030.

This transition may prove vital for energy security in Belgium, given that both of the country’s nuclear power plants, with a combined capacity of 6GW, are set to close in 2025, thanks to a proliferation of technical concerns experienced at both sites.

How is wind power growing in Denmark?

Denmark, meanwhile, intends to install one of the largest offshore wind energy farms in the world, which will launch in 2024. The park will be constructed some 50km from the country’s coast, which would mean that the farm could not be seen from the shore.

The wind farm is expected to have a capacity of 800MW, which could require as many as 75 wind turbines to be installed. This would significantly increase wind power capacity in Northern Europe, and would provide enough energy to power Denmark’s seven biggest cities. This announcement came ahead of an awaited government energy proposal, which is expected to be released later this week.