ETIPWind- Aligning Wind Energy Research and Innovation Strategies

Project Information

ETIPWind

Grant agreement ID: 826042

DOI

10.3030/826042

Project closed

EC signature date 4 December 2018

Start date 1 January 2019

End date 31 December 2021

Funded under

• SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Secure, clean and efficient energy

Total cost

€ 726 637,50

EU contribution

€ 726 637,50

Coordinated by

WindEurope
Belgium

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ETIPWind (ETIPWind- Aligning Wind Energy Research and Innovation Strategies)

Reporting period: 2020-07-01 to 2021-12-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Since the signing of the ETIPWind project, the European Union has sharpened its climate & energy ambitions on several occasions. In 2018 it had a 2030 greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction target of 40% and a renewable energy target of 32%. Three years later it adopted a 55% GHG reduction target and is discussing a renewable energy target of at least 40%. And it has a binding commitment to become climate-neutral by 2050.

From the onset ETIPWind was designed to tackle two main challenges. The first was to build up capacity among policymakers, companies, and citizens to enable the delivery of the energy transition. The second was to increase and align public and private R&I investments in wind energy and associated sectors to accelerate that transition.

Regarding the first challenge ETIPWind activities helped to translate the new political commitments and expectations into concrete objectives and outcomes for the wind energy sector as well as to identify and continuously update the potential bottlenecks to delivering these higher ambitions.

The increase in political ambitions and corresponding expectations from the wind energy sector cannot be underestimated. Wind energy emerges as a central component in all the EU’s climate & energy policies. And as the key to deliver both large volumes of renewable energy and new sustainable economic opportunities for EU citizens and companies across Europe.

Delivering on the latest EU ambitions will require more than 450 GW by 2030 and 1,300 GW by 2050. Today we have 189 GW installed capacity. In 2021 the EU-27 installed 11 GW of new wind farms. To deliver on its ambitions it needs to install more than 32 GW each year. Permitting is the main bottleneck.

Regarding the second challenge ETIPWind made clear that sustaining innovation in European industries is a pre-requisite to deliver on the climate & energy ambitions and to ensure the energy transition will be powered by technologies ‘made in Europe’.

Public funding for wind energy R&I offered invaluable support to the sector. It made European companies the leaders in wind technology, helped build up academic knowledge, and through projects it accelerated the uptake of innovative solutions in the supply chain.

But successes in the past cannot blind us for challenges in the future. A lack of EU market scale visibility, delays in project pipelines due to permitting bottlenecks, and supply chain pressures limit European companies to make durable investments in innovation. Europe’s technology leadership is suffering as is the cost-competitiveness of manufacturing in Europe. R&I funding is needed to retain the competitiveness of the European industry and ensure Europeans can maximally enjoy the socio-economic benefits of wind energy.

And those benefits are significant. The sector employs 300,000 people in Europe and contributes €37bn to the EU’s gross domestic product. And it provides €5bn in tax revenues of which €1bn to local authorities each year. Furthermore, it reduces the EU’s dependency on imported fossil fuels strengthening energy security and the reliability of supply.

The environmental benefits are equally significant. Wind energy is an emission-free, renewable energy source. More wind helps lower carbon emissions to fight climate change, reduces air pollution and its associated health risks, and it lowers the stress on Europe’s’ waterways caused by thermal power plants. All these impacts can be quantified as a hidden cost to society use. And of all energy technologies wind energy contributes the least per MWh produced.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

ETIPWind activities have been tailored to clarify to governments and EU stakeholders what the climate and energy ambitions mean to the wind energy sector and the wider economy, to identify the relevant funding and policy priorities, and to provide input to the public debate.

The ‘Getting fit for 55 and set for 2050: Electrifying Europe with wind energy’ report is a clear example of how an ETIPWind deliverable covers all these objectives. It shows what technologies can deliver on the EU’s climate ambitions, presents the challenges and bottlenecks to their deployment, and provides clear recommendation on how to overcome these challenges. The report is the cornerstone of the wind energy sector’s contribution to the ongoing debate on how to implement the new climate and energy ambitions.

Similarly, the launch event of the ‘‘Getting fit for 55 and set for 2050’ report was an example of how ETIPWind events have brought together decision-makers in EU and national governments as well as industry and research institutes to translate these recommendations in concrete political and economic actions. Close to 1,000 people watched the launch event, more than 1,500 have downloaded the report, and almost 3,500 people have seen the key messages on the website.

Overall, the communication and dissemination activities of ETIPWind have brought great success. Even if ETIPWind had to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated restrictive measures by developing more digital content and creatin more online events. The project has reached over 1,100,000 people across the three-year period. Social media accounted for the vast majority, but almost 32,000 people also visited the ETIPWind website. In addition, close to 12,000 reports were downloaded and more than 2,800 people actively participated in ETIPWind workshops and events.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

Although the final impacts of the project will only reveal themselves in the coming years, we can already observe several direct impacts on EU and national policymaking.

First, we have seen several governmental reports, including from the European Commission, Spanish government, and UK parliament, explicitly refer to ETIPWind reports and documents. And more broadly the higher political ambitions for wind energy can - in part - be attributed to ETIPWind interactions with policymakers on the state of wind energy technology and its future development.

Second, national plans and programmes take up the ETIPWind recommendations on the policy and funding priorities relevant to the necessary wind energy expansion. This includes the Recovery & Resilience Plans of Germany (permitting), Spain (renewables-based electrification), and Lithuania and Poland (offshore wind infrastructure and grid development).

Third, the new Climate, Energy and Environmental State aid Guidelines acknowledge the trends in wind energy technology. Whereas in the past direct support for innovative projects was only allowed for projects capped at a fixed capacity, national governments can now provide direct support to pilot and demonstration projects based on their innovation. This new provision is key to support the wind energy sector as individual turbines have become more powerful, surpassing the old threshold.

Last, the project has cemented the ETIPWind brand as the reference source for wind energy innovation and research. ETIPWind, thanks to its support from the European Commission, is seen as an established, reliable, and trustworthy source of information. Industry, academia, NGOs, and other stakeholders all turn to ETIPWind to understand the latest technology trends and research priorities.

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