The global wind market is set to end 2025 with record growth, adding 170 GW of capacity despite headwinds in the United States and Europe.
Wind power outlook: record year ahead
The global wind market is on track for a record-breaking end of year. Despite early headwinds in Europe and the United States, the sector could close 2025 with an additional 170 GW of capacity, more than 70 GW of which are scheduled to come online in the fourth quarter alone.
According to the latest market outlook update published by Wood Mackenzie, the report provides a detailed analysis of installation forecasts at both global and regional levels through 2034, highlighting strong medium-term trends. Analysts say the sector is on course to add its second terawatt of capacity by the end of the decade, a milestone reached in just seven years compared with the 23 years it took to achieve the first terawatt in 2023.
China’s dominance is becoming increasingly evident, while Western markets face downward revisions. In Europe, and particularly within the European Union, uncertainty around regulations and overly complex permitting processes remain major obstacles. In the United States, the Trump administration’s final version of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act has created a minefield for renewable energy investors.
“While key markets like the United States face policy setbacks, the sector will reach historic scale over the next decade,” Wood Mackenzie noted. “Forecasts point to a 13% quarter-on-quarter increase, driven by substantial growth in China’s onshore wind sector, with global capacity expected to double from 2024 levels by 2032.”
The offshore wind segment faces its own challenges, including high costs and failed auctions, as shown by Germany’s recent setback.
But Kárys Prado, Senior Research Analyst at Wood Mackenzie, emphasized that “the most significant transformation in the wind industry in decades is still underway. From the first 1 MW turbine in 1941 to 16 GW by 2000, then to 1 TW in 2023, we are now racing toward 2 TW by 2030. Even as the sector achieves historic scale, its success will depend on how effectively it navigates this new geography of growth and adapts to shifting political landscapes.”
