In its newly released Strategic Research
Agenda (SRA), the European Wind Energy Technology Platform (TPWind) a
new vision in which more than a quarter of the EU's electricity could
be provided by wind in 2030. It describes the research priorities that
tie in with this vision, and the financial and human resources these
priorities will entail.
According to the SRA,
wind energy could cover 12-14% of the EU’s electricity consumption by
2020, with a total installed capacity of 180 gigawatts (GW). This could
increase to 22-28% of consumption and 300 GW by 2030.
The SRA
points out that fulfilling this vision will be a major industrial and
technological challenge for Europe, and that public and industry
research resources across Europe must be mobilized through the
coordination of investment at European and country levels. The report
also lays out research priorities and actions for the sector to that
could help ensure that it develops new and better technologies
successfully.
TPWind is coordinated by the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA).
It was set up in 2006 with the support of the European Commission in
order to identify research tasks and reduce the social, environmental
and technological costs of wind energy.
“TPWind’s vision and
action plan for research, as presented in the SRA, are hugely important
steps forward for the future deployment of wind energy in Europe. The
time has now come to begin putting the action plan to effect, and for
this the support of the European Commission and Member States will make
all the difference," said Henning Kruse, chairman of TPWind.
To download the report, click here.
