Danish wind power development

Abstract

Denmark has a long tradition of wind power development dating back to the 1890s. This provided a professional basis for the introduction of wind power in Denmark during the first two decades of this century and later during the Second World War. That phase of Danish wind power development culminated with the 200 kW Gedser mill operating from 1959 to 1967 with great reliability. After the oil crisis in 1973, a new phase of Danish wind power development was initiated. Using the basic concept from the Gedser mill, a government-sponsored programme has led to a strong commercial development of Danish wind turbines. In the late seventies, typical Danish turbines had power ratings around 20 kW. Today, 500 to 600 kW turbines are commercially available. As of early 1995 more than 500 MW of wind electric capacity is installed in Denmark, covering about 3.5% of Danish electricity demand. The official target is to cover 10% of electricity demand by the year 2005. The corresponding installed capacity would amount to 1300 to 1500 MW. Recently, growing local opposition to the Danish wind programme has delayed the development toward the official target for 2005. The Danish government is now taking new initiatives in order to overcome this barrier, including increased pressure on municipalities and development of new offshore sites for wind farms. Another barrier may be introduced by a single energy market in the EU which does not fully incorporate externalities in the market price. Long-range coverage of more than 25% of Danish electricity demand by wind is a realistic goal, especially if a close coupling with Norwegian hydropower can be established.