New data from industry body WindEurope has shown that a record amount of wind power was bought by European companies in 2018. New wind deals made through corporate Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) amounted to 1.5 GW last year, up from the previous year’s 1.3 GW.
Credit: WindEurope
Credit: WindEurope
European companies have now signed a total of 5 GW of wind power PPAs since their inception in 2014, almost the total wind energy capacity of Denmark, claims WindEurope.
This record amount is down to an increasing appetite in energy-hungry businesses such as IT giants and aluminium producers, as the companies search for greener and more sustainable ways to power data centres and heavy machinery.
The rush to secure renewable energy sources on the part of these industry giants comes as the cost of wind power becomes more competitive. Many companies are seeing the purchasing of wind and other renewables as a triple-win; managing costs, reducing carbon emissions, and a PR boost with an increasingly environmentally conscious public.
The biggest European buyers of wind energy in 2018 aluminium producers Alcoa and Norsk Hydro. Both firms signed deals to purchase power from Swedish and Norwegian wind farms.
Previously, the IT sector were the main drivers of the PPA market as they sought to power data centres, but more recently other sectors are joining in.
German car manufacturer Mercedes-Benz has signed PPA deals in Germany and Poland to power their electric vehicle and battery plants.
As big companies show interest in purchasing renewable energy, in order to manage often volatile energy costs and reduce CO² emissions, wind farms are searching for new secure incomes as government subsidies that previously underpinned the industry begin to wane.
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