2j7YOwO

02 MARKET AND INDUSTRY TRENDS
interest continues to grow in other sectors. 74 The number of
private purchasers of wind-generated electricity and turbines
rose during 2015, as did the scale of their purchases. 75
Corporations increasingly are purchasing wind power from
utilities, signing PPAs, or buying their own turbines to power
operations – particularly in the United States, but increasingly
in other regions – to obtain access to reliable low-cost
power. 76 Investment funds, insurance companies, banks and
institutional players are investing in wind energy because of
its stable return. 77
Community and citizen ownership also continued to expand in
several countries and regions during 2015, including in Australia,
Europe, Japan, New Zealand, North America and South Africa. 78
(p See Feature.) However, there is concern that policy changes
– such as Germany’s shift towards tenders and Nova Scotia’s
cancelation of the community tariff under its FIT – could slow
future development. 79
Small-scale i turbines are used for a variety of applications,
including defence, rural electrification, water pumping, battery
charging and telecommunications, and they are deployed
increasingly to displace diesel in remote locations. 80 Following
a decline in 2013, the global market grew by 8.3% in 2014 (latest
data available), and total capacity was up an estimated 10.9%. 81
By end-2014, more than 830,330 ii small-scale turbines, or over
830 MW, were operating worldwide (up from 749 MW at end-
2013). 82 The average size of small-scale turbines continues to
creep up, with significant differences among countries, due
largely to increasing interest in larger grid-connected systems (in
some cases driven by policy structure). 83
While most countries have some small-scale turbines in use, the
majority of units and capacity operating at the end of 2014 was in
China (343.6 MW), the United States (226 MW) and the United
Kingdom (132.8 MW). 84 Other leaders included Italy (32.7 MW),
Germany (24 MW), Ukraine (14.6 MW) and Canada (13.1 MW) iii . 85
The US market continued to struggle, reflecting continuing
competition with solar PV and the low cost of other electricity
sources, although new leasing models are building momentum. 86
Markets boomed in both Italy and the United Kingdom during
2014, but UK deployment rates remained significantly below the
2012 level. 87
Repowering has become a billion-dollar market, particularly
in Europe. 88 While most repowering involves the replacement
of old turbines with fewer, larger, taller, and more-efficient and
reliable machines, some operators are switching even relatively
new machines for upgraded turbines that include software
improvements. 89 During 2015, at least 300 turbines (totalling an
estimated 300 MW) were dismantled in Europe, two turbines
(0.7 MW) in Japan and one unit (2 MW) in Australia. 90 The
largest market for repowering was Germany. 91 There also is a
thriving international market for used turbines in Africa, Asia and
elsewhere. 92
Wind power is playing a major role in power supply in an
increasing number of countries. In the EU, capacity in operation
at end-2015 was enough to cover an estimated 11.4% of electricity
consumption in a normal wind year. 93 Several EU countries –
including Denmark (42%), Ireland (over 23%), Portugal (23.2%)
and Spain (over 18%) – met higher shares of their demand with
wind energy. 94 Four German states had enough wind capacity
at year’s end to meet over 60% of their electricity needs. 95 In the
United States, wind power represented 4.7% of total electricity
generation and accounted for more than 10% of generation in 12
states, including Iowa (31.3%). 96 Brazil reached almost 3%, and
Uruguay generated about 15.5% of its electricity with the wind. 97
Globally, wind power capacity in place by the end of 2015 was
enough to meet an estimated almost 3.7% of total electricity
consumption. 98
i Small-scale wind systems generally are considered to include turbines that produce enough power for a single home, farm or small business (keeping in
mind that consumption levels vary considerably across countries). The International Electrotechnical Commission sets a limit at approximately 50 kW, and
the World Wind Energy Association (WWEA) and the American Wind Energy Association define “small-scale” as up to 100 kW, which is the range also
used in the GSR; however, size varies according to the needs and/or laws of a country or state/province, and there is no globally recognised definition
or size limit. For more information, see, for example, WWEA, Small Wind World Report 2016 (Bonn: March 2016), Summary, http://www.wwindea.org/
small-wind-world-market-back-on-track-again/.
ii Total numbers of units does not include some major markets, including India, for which data were not available. Taking this into account it is estimated that
more than 1 million units are operating worldwide, from WWEA, Small Wind World Report 2016.
iii Data are for end-2014 with the exception of Canada (year 2011).
78