Fighting windmills? EU industrial interests and global climate negotiations

wind turbines need a wind speed of 4-5 metres per second to start operating.¹¹
If wind-electricity replaces coal or diesel generation, about 1 ton of CO2 is
saved for every MW hour of wind power production (IEA, 2002b).

Table 4: The 10 largest markets for wind energy at the end of 2001 (cumula-
tive MW)

Source: BTM Consult (2002).

Table 4 shows that Germany, Spain and the United States were the three largest
markets in 2001 on an accumulated basis. The markets of the United States, In-
dia and China are still relatively small compared to Germany and Denmark, for
example. Russia, which also has a huge potential, is not even within the top
ten.¹²

11 Note, that the capacity in MW does not say anything about how much energy is actually being
produced. If a 1 MW wind turbine (corresponding to 1000 kW) is installed, then it can produce
1 MW per production hour at its maximum, that is, at wind speeds above 15 meters per second.

12 As suggested by BTM Consult (2001), a number of huge potential markets exist for profitable
wind energy production. In particular, Canada and Mexico (non-Annex B countries) have fa-
vourable land and wind conditions. China has severe pollution problems along its east coast
due to the extensive use of fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas) that create local pollution, such as ox-
ides of sulphur and nitrogen (which are a cause of acid rain). China, which is in the need of
clean energy, is also therefore a huge potential market, with its enormous potential of wind re-
sources along the coastal area, on the offshore islands and Inner Mongolia. Similarly, the wind
market potential of Russia with its vast areas and excellent wind conditions is unique.

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