Global wind power in 2016 saw a 12.6 percent increase and reached a record 486.7 gigawatts (GW), according to Global Wind Energy Council's (GWEC) report late on Tuesday.
"In 2016, 54.6 GW of installation globally was achieved for the first time in a single year in 2016," the report said adding that in 2016, a 12.6 percent increase in installation was made.
According to the Global Wind Council's Annual Market Update Report 2016, China led the way with 23.3 GW of new installed capacity. The country now has more than 168 GW of wind power installed, more than the entire European Union members' wind capacity.
China's success was helped by investments in renewables, which in a single year in 2015 and 2016 was over $100 billion - another record for being the first country to have renewable investments at this level.
"Elsewhere in Asia, India is the main story, which has now surpassed Brazil to move into fourth place in the global cumulative installations ranking, and had the fifth largest market last year," the report says.
Europe had a surprisingly good year with Germany’s record-setting 5.4 GW of installations, bolstered by more than 2 GW of offshore wind; and the U.S. market had a remarkable fourth quarter, ending the year with an 8.2 GW market, much higher than most had expected.
In the future, Asia will continue to lead, and Europe will move steadily towards its 2020 targets, although there may be some bumps in the road, the report said.
By the end of 2015, installation of wind power globally to date reached 486.7 GW.
- Turkey sets new record
The European Union installed 12.5 GW of gross additional wind capacity in 2016, the report showed.
According to the report, this was 3 percent less than the new installations in 2015, although the total European market was marginally larger in 2016.
With a total installed capacity of 153.7 GW, wind power has overtaken coal as the second largest form of power generation capacity in the EU, the report said.
The report also indicates that Turkey, with around 1.4 gigawatts of additional installed capacity, also broke its record for annual new installations.
Beyond the EU member states, Turkey is the largest market, crossing the 6 GW mark in terms of total installed capacity.
"Looking ahead, Turkey’s wind sector looks promising," the report concluded.
(Anadolu Agency)
