Most wind power in Czechia is generated in the northwest; none in the south

Most wind power in Czechia is generated by turbines in the northwest of the country, with almost 62 percent of it coming last year from the Ústí nad Labem, Karlovy Vary and Liberec regions. By contrast, none was generated in the South Bohemian Region or in Prague. In absolute terms, the most wind power was generated last year in the Ústí nad Labem Region, while the Karlovy Vary Region ranked first relative to its area. The data was provided to the Czech News Agency today by the Czech Wind Energy Association (ČSVE) and the Chamber of Renewable Energy Sources (Komora OZE). They also noted that wind farms and windmills will open to visitors for Global Wind Day on Saturday, June 15.

According to a report by the Energy Regulatory Office (ERÚ), 701 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity was generated from wind in Czechia last year. More than 175 GWh came from the Ústí nad Labem Region, over 148 GWh from the Karlovy Vary Region and almost 111 GWh from the Liberec Region. The Ústí nad Labem and Karlovy Vary regions have the largest installed wind capacity, followed at some distance by the Liberec and Olomouc regions. Domestic wind farms still cover only one percent of electricity consumption, while the nuclear Dukovany and Temelín power plants supplied 30 400 GWh to the transmission grid last year. Permitting new wind turbines is complex and still routinely takes ten years or more, industry associations warned.

Local opposition often holds up the construction of wind farms. Some wind farms and windmills will therefore open to the public on Wind Day, giving people a chance to see how they work. A program of accompanying events will be held at 21 locations on Saturday, June 15. “At some sites, firefighters will practice evacuating people from a wind turbine, while others will have bouncy castles, face painting, virtual reality or competitions for children,” said ČSVE chairman Michal Janeček. Details are available on the event website.

The government plans to designate so-called acceleration zones, where permits for solar or wind farms will be processed faster. The government approved the procedure for defining the zones at the end of April. Industry associations called it a missed opportunity that the rules will not also be simplified outside these areas. According to ČSVE and Komora OZE, the replacement of older wind turbines with modern ones also needs to be made simpler and faster. They say the current draft could significantly slow the transition to domestic sources of clean energy.

“It would be a great shame to simplify permitting for wind farms only in acceleration zones. We need comprehensive, clear rules to make permitting wind turbines simple and fast throughout the Czech Republic. Why should preparing wind farms elsewhere in the country continue to take ten years or more instead of a maximum of two?” said Komora OZE chairman Štěpán Chalupa.

The government expects the share of renewable energy sources, currently around 19 percent, to rise significantly in the future. Under last year’s government draft of the National Energy and Climate Plan, the share of renewables should increase to at least 30 percent by 2030. The European Commission returned the draft for revision. Industry organizations say the domestic potential is higher than 30 percent and that the government should raise the target in the revised version of the plan.

Ranking of regions by wind power generation in 2023:

Source: ERÚ, ČSVE, Komora OZE