Wind energy continues to strengthen Europe’s industrial competitiveness and energy security. In 2025, Europe built 19.1 GW of new wind power capacity, bringing total wind energy capacity to 304 GW, according to WindEurope’s Annual Statistics Report. In addition, the industry invested €45bn in projects planned for the coming years.

“Europe’s wind industry is stepping up to the task. In 2025 the industry invested €45bn to make Europe more competitive and secure. But politicians considering to tamper with the EU electricity market design and the architecture of the EU ETS directly undermine these investments. Changing the rules of the game now would be waving goodbye to competitiveness and energy security,” said WindEurope CEO Tinne van der Straeten.

Installation trends

According to the report, Germany led Europe’s expansion with 5.2 GW of new capacity, followed by Türkiye (2.1 GW), Sweden (1.8 GW) and Spain (1.6 GW). Onshore wind remained the main driver of growth, accounting for 90% of all new capacity. Repowering contributed 2 GW, and nine countries installed more than 500 MW of onshore wind each.

Lithuania stood out in 2025, adding 759 MW to increase its total capacity by over 40%. Wind supplied 33% of the country’s electricity demand, helping Lithuania reduce its reliance on Russian fossil fuels and decouple from the Russian power grid.

Offshore wind installations were more modest, with only 2 GW connected to the grid—the lowest figure since 2016—due in part to construction delays. Only the UK, Germany, and France added new offshore turbines, with a catch-up effect expected in 2026.

Outlook for 2026-2030

The report explains that Europe is set to build 151 GW of new wind energy between 2026 and 2030, with 112 GW located in the EU. More than a third of this build-out will come from Germany’s growing onshore market. However, most EU countries face significant challenges to expanding wind energy.

Grid development remains the top bottleneck, with insufficient electricity infrastructure and long connection queues slowing new projects. Electrification of industry, mobility, and heating is progressing too slowly, weakening the business case for wind.

WindEurope calls on the EU Electrification Action Plan to focus on readily electrifiable applications such as industrial heat and to reduce non-energy taxes on electricity.

Permitting is another critical hurdle. Although the EU has introduced measures to accelerate approval under the Renewable Energy Directive, most Member States have fallen behind. The European Commission has opened infringement procedures against 26 of 27 EU countries for failing to implement these rules. WindEurope warns that these delays are unacceptable in a context of declining industrial competitiveness and high power prices.