European wind industry is becoming uncompetitive

Europe’s wind power industry is losing competitiveness compared with other regions of the world, particularly due to rising costs and waning public support, experts say. This could put the European Union’s renewable energy targets at risk.

“Europe is no longer competitive. … Working conditions, wages, electricity costs—all these factors do not match what we are ultimately willing to pay for the product,” Andreas Evertz, CEO of Flender, a German supplier of wind power components, said at the WindEurope 2024 conference.

The European Union is seeking to protect its industry, for example through the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA). Under the NZIA, the EU has set a target of meeting at least 40% of expected growing demand for technologies to decarbonise the energy sector with EU suppliers by 2030.

But the EU is “not addressing the economic side of things,” and many companies in the wind power sector are looking to Asia for components to improve their competitiveness, Evertz said.

The US and China are more attractive

Tony Adam, head of global public affairs at wind turbine manufacturer Nordex, agrees. He cited more attractive regions such as the US and China, where the industry receives very strong public support.

The EU has set a binding target for at least 43% of gross final energy consumption to come from renewable energy sources by 2030. This would mean almost doubling the current share of renewables.

The loss of competitiveness in Europe’s wind industry could put the EU’s climate goals at risk by making supply chains more vulnerable to geopolitical events that disrupt imports. It could also slow Europe’s economic growth and threaten investment in new energy sources.

Asian subsidies

Asian countries are known for their willingness to provide substantial subsidies to their domestic industries. One example from the wind power sector is glass fibre, which is used in wind turbine blades. Asia has been subsidising glass fibre production for decades, and Europe has so far been unable to match this support.

According to Petra Inghelbrecht of Owens Corning Fiberglass, support from Asian countries has increased significantly over the past two to three years, threatening to “wipe out” European markets. Inghelbrecht even described this as “unfair competition” and called for a level playing field.