Germany to add up to 3.2 GW of onshore wind in 2023

Onshore wind deployment in Germany is expected to continue growing in 2023 with between 2.7 GW and 3.2 GW of fresh capacity, according to estimates by the wind energy association BWE and VDMA Power Systems.

In 2022, a total of 551 onshore wind turbines with an installed capacity of 2,403 MW were connected to the German grid which is 25% more than in the prior year.

The table below provides details about the onshore wind capacity in Germany.

Wind energy in Germany is expanding but the growth is too slow given the targets set by Berlin. The two associations are calling on the federal states to use the tools provided by the federal government through all legislative changes last year and to quickly enable a significant acceleration in the expansion.

Despite all the measures that have already been taken, there are still a number of issues that need to be tackled quickly, according to BWE and VDMA Power Systems.

The biggest hurdle to rapid expansion remains the lengthy and complicated approval process, BWE's president Hermann Albers says and calls on the federal government to speed up the process as quickly as possible.

The repowering potential must be also tapped as the use of more efficient technology could add up to 45 GW in the short term. Therefore, the repowering process must be urgently simplified.

Additionally, areas for new wind turbines must be made available, permit bottlenecks must be overcome and hurdles to the certification of turbine towers must be removed.

Another issue that must be addressed, according to the two organisations, is the transportation of wind turbines from the production site to the installation site. If the conditions in heavy-duty transport are not improved with transport permits and expansion of the transport infrastructure, supply chains and expansion targets will be put at risk.

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