European wind energy production reaches new highs. (Environmental Intelligence).Europeans installed more than $5.8 billion worth of wind power technology last year, ending 2002 with nearly 23,700 megawatts (MW) of wind energy capacity, an increase of 33 percent over 2001. Europe now has almost three-fourths of the world's wind energy capacity, and European companies It may never be fully completed or, depending on its its nature, it may be that it can never be completed. However, new and revised entries in the list are always welcome. This is a list of companies from the countries in the European Union. manufacture about 80 percent of all wind turbines sold. More than 12 million European households now get their electricity from the wind. In regions of Germany, Denmark, and Spain, wind energy provides substantially more than 20 percent of the power for the electric grid. These three countries alone account for 90 percent of the wind energy capacity installed on the continent during 2002. Germany strengthened its position as the world wind-energy leader, ending the year with 12,000 MW--enough to meet 4.5 percent of its electricity needs. Germany's share is about 38 percent of global wind energy installations. Spain vaulted to second place, increasing its wind energy capacity by 44 percent and surpassing the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. . More than 240 MW of wind turbines are now spinning offshore, all of them in Europe, with an additional 20,000 MW proposed for areas surrounding sur·round tr.v. sur·round·ed, sur·round·ing, sur·rounds 1. To extend on all sides of simultaneously; encircle. 2. To enclose or confine on all sides so as to bar escape or outside communication. n. northern Europe. While the United Kingdom has been a wind industry laggard in Europe thus far, Prime Minister Tony Blair Noun 1. Tony Blair - British statesman who became prime minister in 1997 (born in 1953) Anthony Charles Lynton Blair, Blair released an Energy White Paper in February 2003 which commits the U.K. to, reducing its carbon dioxide carbon dioxide, chemical compound, CO2, a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that is about one and one-half times as dense as air under ordinary conditions of temperature and pressure. emissions 60 percent by 2050 and gives priority to developing renewable energy Renewable energy utilizes natural resources such as sunlight, wind, tides and geothermal heat, which are naturally replenished. Renewable energy technologies range from solar power, wind power, and hydroelectricity to biomass and biofuels for transportation. technologies. The U.K. has the best wind resources in Europe, and much of its planned development will be via offshore facilities. The rapid expansion of wind energy use in Europe is due to ambitious and consistent policies enacted to drive markets for renewable energy. Policies such as feed-in laws, which guarantee grid access and specify payments for renewably generated electricity, have also resulted in technological innovation, significant cost reductions, and broad public support for renewable energy. The European Wind Energy Association The European Wind Energy Association (EWEA) actively promotes the utilisation of wind power in Europe and worldwide.[1] EWEA members from 40 countries include over 300 companies, associations and research institutions. predicts that with such policies in place, total European wind energy capacity could exceed 200 gigawatts (GW) by 2010. |
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