Wind turbine orders rose 23% worldwide in the first half, driven by China

Of the total 91,2 gigawatts (GW), Chinese orders alone accounted for 70 GW for its domestic market and 5 GW of overseas orders, research firm Wood Mackenzie said in a statement Monday.

“Chinese manufacturers continue to break records for order intake, both domestically and abroad,” said Luke Lewandowski, vice president of global renewable energy research at Wood Mackenzie.

"In contrast, Western manufacturers are struggling to keep up," he said. They are "confronted by China's competitive advantages in terms of price and availability" but also by "weak demand in Western markets, as well as political uncertainty, inflation and other cost pressures, (which) have also depressed activity in the United States and Europe."

Western manufacturers contributed only 13% of global order intake in the first half. Excluding China, orders fell by 16% (-2,3 GW) over the period. They even fell by 42% year-on-year in the Americas and Europe, with less than 10 GW combined ordered.

"China remains the undisputed leader in the industry," notes Luke Lewandowski.

Furthermore, while onshore activity (land-based wind turbines) grew in the first half of the year, the offshore sector experienced difficulties, with a 38% year-on-year drop in order intake (-4,1 GW) due to "economic conditions of the projects (which) slowed down the market".

"The offshore market has nearly 30 GW of conditional orders worldwide, including 21 GW for projects in Europe and the United States, but difficult economic conditions continue to delay their conversion into firm orders," according to Luke Lewandowski.