GWEC calls for supply chain action as wind sector is set to rebound

March 28 (Renewables Now) - After a challenging year, the wind sector is ready to rebound in 2023 but policy action is needed to avoid the emergence of supply chain bottlenecks, the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) said on Monday in its Global Wind Report 2023.

GWEC projects that 680 GW of wind capacity will be installed globally between 2023 and 2027, including 130 GW offshore. Onshore wind in China will account for 300 GW of that capacity.

According to the report, the world added 77.6 GW of wind capacity in 2022 after installing more than 90 GW in each of the previous two years. But deployments are expected to accelerate in the years ahead driven by positive developments such as the US Inflation Reduction Act, Europe’ increased renewables ambition, China’s continued expansion of renewables and faster rate of deployment in large developing countries.

Wind power installations are expected to exceed 100 GW in 2023 and average at 136 GW per year until 2027, representing a compound annual growth rate of 15%. By the end of 2030, the industry is seen to reach 2 TW in operation after achieving its first 1 TW later this year.

Against this backdrop, GWEC warned that spare capacity is limited and could disappear by 2026 in the absence of urgent investment in the supply chain.

Its chief executive Ben Backwell called on policymakers “to act decisively to fix market and regulatory barriers to allow investment to flow into new factories to avoid future bottlenecks.”

“In addition, we need much more active global collaboration to enhance and de-risk the supply of critical raw materials in order to ensure that the green economic revolution had the inputs it needs in this crucial period,” he added.

According to the organisation, the risk of supply chain shortfalls for Europe and the US could be exacerbated by policies seeking to reshore manufacturing away from China and protect local industry and jobs.