China to still be number-one wind market by 2020 - GlobalData

Aug 15, 2013 - China will remain the number-one wind power market by the end of the decade even though the explosive growth rate will decelerate on poor infrastructure, low turbine quality and uncertain pricing policies, GlobalData projects.

In a new report, the market research firm noted that China’s cumulative wind power installations have been doubling each year between 2006 and 2011. GlobalData calculates that the compound annual growth rate (CARG) for wind power in China was 76% in 2006-2012. The reasons behind that surge include an appealing concessional programme and low-cost financing from government banks, according to Swati Singh, GlobalData’s power sector analyst.

Globally 74% of all wind farms in 2012 were located in China, the US, Germany, the UK, Italy, Spain and India. According to the “Wind Power - Global Market Size, Turbine Market Share, Installation Prices, Regulations and Investment Analysis to 2020” report, the future of the wind sector is bright. Still, growth will be slower mainly due to policy uncertainty in the US and the fact that the European wind industry is maturing.

As for offshore wind, GlobalData guided for 51.2 GW of total capacity by 2020, compared to 5.5 GW in 2012. This would mark a CAGR of 32.3%. The UK will keep its position as the offshore wind energy leader.

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