 News
The Year of the Renewables Revolution.......
a record breaking year for wind energy
Thursday 21 December 2006
Wind energy in the UK has broken all records in 2006, making this the most productive and successful year for the sector since the country’s first commercial wind farm started generating 15 years ago.
A record breaking 630 new megawatts (MW) of wind energy have already been commissioned in 2006: an increase of 50% on performance of 2005, which in turn saw a 100% increase on capacity commissioned in 2004.
The countdown has now begun to the UK’s second gigawatt of installed capacity – only 18 months after commissioning its first - firmly positioning the wind industry as a key player in the UK energy market and the UK wind industry in the top ten players globally.
Wind energy is officially the fastest growing energy source world wide, with an average annual growth rate of 23% over the last 15 years. And here in the UK, home to some of the best winds in the world, this trend is very evident.
With a further 625 MW currently under construction, and consents awarded for a further 2120 MW, the UK wind sector is undoubtedly leading the way in providing clean new generation, and meeting Government targets for securing future energy supplies and tackling climate change.
The renewables revolution firmly underway means that a record number of homes will be powered by the wind this Christmas: wind turbines in the UK generate sufficient electricity to meet the needs of over a million households – or to boil enough water for two billion cups of tea to wash down the Christmas meal.
Notes to editors:
The British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) is the UK’s leading renewable energy association, with over 300 company members. Formed 28 years ago, BWEA is at the forefront of the development of the UK wind industry, representing the sector to Government, business, media and the public. It expanded its mission two years ago to champion the emerging technologies of wave and tidal stream power generation.
Wind energy has now started a major expansion in the UK and will be the single greatest contributor to the Government’s 10% 2010 renewable energy target and 20% 2020 renewable aspiration. Together, wind, wave and tidal power can supply 21% of our electricity by 2020, resulting in over £16 billion of investment in UK plc. See www.bwea.com/energyreview.
Wind energy growth
A record number of wind farms were commissioned in 2006, adding one new offshore and 21 new onshore  projects, totalling 300 wind turbines and 630.80 MW, to the UK wind power portfolio.
Growth year-on-year has steadily grown, with new capacity commissioned in 2005 at standing at 19 wind farms, 258 turbines and 446.81 MW, compared with the 2004 totals of 12 wind farms, 147 turbines and 240.68 MW. For further industry statistics see the UK Wind Energy Database online at www.bwea.com/ukwed.
This year 33 onshore wind farms were approved, totalling 425 turbines and 821.15 MW. A further 2 offshore projects have been approved, London Array and Thanet, both in the Thames Estuary, to a total of 1,300 MW. See related release
Notable new wind farms built in 2006 include Hadyard Hill, South Ayrshire, owned and operated by Scottish and Southern Energy, the first wind farm in the UK to generate over 100 MW of power and Barrow, off the coast of Cumbria, for Centrica and Dong, the UK’s 5th offshore wind farm.
The UK is at the forefront of the offshore wind industry, with potentially 8,700 megawatts of projects at various stages of development, and is set to overtake Denmark as the leader in installed offshore wind generating capacity in 2008.
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