Wind energy output up 12% in 2017, sector association reports

The total amount of wind energy generated in 2017, both for commercial use and test runs, reached 2,651 MW, a 12 percent increase compared to the previous year, ELETAEN, the Greek Wind Energy Association, has announced.

Of this amount, 321.7 MW was generated on non-interconnected islands and 2,329.9 MW for the country’s grid.

Broken down geographically, 877.85 MW, or 31 percent, was generated on the mainland, 502.8 MW (18.9%) on the Peloponese, and 335.45 MW (12.6%) in eastern Macedonia-Thrace, northeastern Greece.

Wind energy facilities were installed in the Epirus region, northwestern Greece, for the first time in 2017.

Terna Energy was the country’s biggest wind energy producer in 2017 with an output of 530.1 MW, or 20 percent. As for the country’s other firms making up the top five, the Ellaktor group followed with 256.7 MW (9.7%), Iberdrola Rokas was next with 250.7 MW (9.5%), EDF EN Hellas was the fourth biggest producer with 238.2 MW (9%), and ENEL Green Power was ranked fifth with 200.5 MW (7.6%).

As for the development of wind energy installations, Vestas is the market leader with a 50.6 percent share. Enercon follows with 22.3 percent, Siemens-Gamesa is ranked third with 19.9 percent and Nordex is placed fourth with 5.4 percent.

In 2017, Vestas installed 47.1 percent of new wind energy facilities, Enercon followed with 22.9 percent, Siemens-Gamesa was next with 19.4 percent, and Nordex was fourth with 10.6 percent.

Late in 2017, wind energy facilities representing a total capacity of 550 MW were under construction. These projects are expected to be launched within the next 15 months.

A national RES production target set for 2020 is unlikely to be reached. New RES installations totaling over 3,700 MW would need to be installed between 2018 and 2020 if this objective is to be achieved, ELETAEN noted.