Spain’s wind energy growth lags 2030 goals – GEM

Spain must accelerate its wind energy expansion to meet its ambitious 2030 targets, according to a new report by the US-based Global Energy Monitor (GEM).

Despite renewables generating over half of Spain’s electricity last year, with wind power contributing nearly a quarter, local opposition and licensing issues are stalling new wind farm projects.

Spain, with approximately 30 GW of installed wind capacity, is Europe’s second-largest wind energy producer after Germany.

The GEM report highlights that while 1.7 GW of wind farms are currently under construction, Spain needs to add capacity at a pace nearly five times faster than the current average of 1 GW per year to achieve its goal of 62 GW by 2030.

Last year saw only 600 MW of new capacity, a significant drop from 1.7 GW in 2022. Addressing these deployment challenges and advancing offshore wind projects are crucial for meeting the target.

In contrast, Spain is leading in utility-scale solar, with 7.8 GW under construction, outpacing the combined capacity of the next three European countries.