Wind power in Denmark

Offshore wind turbines near Copenhagen

Stimulated by the world's oil crises in the 1970s, Denmark decided to develop wind power. In 1988, two years after the Chernobyl disaster, the Danes passed a law forbidding the construction of nuclear power plants.

Some 20 per cent of Danish domestic electricity now comes from wind and Denmark is a leading wind power nation in the world. The Danes were pioneers in developing commercial wind power during the 1970’s and today almost half of the wind turbines around the world are produced by Danish manufacturers such as Vestas and Siemens (formerly known as Bonus).

The Danish wind turbine industry is the world’s largest and 90% of the wind turbines manufactured in Denmark are sold to international markets. In 2003, the Danish manufacturers had a total world market share of approximately 38%, generating a combined turnover of almost 3 billion Euro and maintaining over 20,000 people employed in the industry, from wind turbine factories to maintenance and research.

The development of wind power in Denmark has been characterized by a close collaboration between publicly financed research and industry in key areas such as research and development, certification, testing, and the preparation of standards. For example, in the 1980s, a large number of small Danish companies were developing wind turbines to sell to California, and the Danish Riso laboratory provided test facilities and certification procedures. These resulted in reliable products and the rapid expansion of the Danish turbine manufacturing industry.

Denmark has relatively modest average wind speeds in the range of 4.9 to 5.6 metres per second measured at 10 m height. Onshore wind resources are highest in the Western part of the country, and on the Eastern islands with coastlines facing South or West. The country has very large offshore wind resources, and large areas of sea territory with a shallow water depth of 5 to 15 m, where siting is most feasible. These sites offer higher wind speeds, in the range of roughly 8.5 to 9 m/s at 50 m height.

Wind turbines are popular in Denmark. According to public opinion polls carried out in Denmark, 86% of the Danes support wind energy when compared with existing fuel sources. Surveys also show that direct involvement of the general public in wind farm projects has helped to increase local approval.

Professor Bent Ole Mortensen compared and contrasted the development of wind power in Denmark with that of the United States in a recent Symposium in Houston that focused on economic and environmental barriers to wind power.

See also

• Energy policy of the European Union
• List of wind turbine manufacturers
• Wind farm
• Wind power in Germany
• Wind power in Spain
• Wind power in the European Union

External links

• Danish Wind Industry Association
• Middelgrunden Wind Turbine Cooperative

Bibliography

• Boyle, Godfrey (2004). Renewable energy: Power for a sustainable future, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-926178-4
• Caldicott, Helen (2006). Nuclear power is not the answer to global warming or anything else, Melbourne University Press, ISBN 0 522 85251 3